


A Valeween Night To Remember

by QuirkQuartz



Category: The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: (It's not too bad but fair warning), Action, Action & Romance, Angst, Blood, Chapter 1 is a prolouge, Comedy, Cultural Differences, Digital Art, Drama, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fan Art, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Halloween, Humor, Lumity, Monsters, Pining, Romance, Shipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-22
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:29:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 167,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27153874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuirkQuartz/pseuds/QuirkQuartz
Summary: Halloween is easily Luz’s favourite holiday – Scary costumes, free candy, and a day where being weird is a good thing? What’s not to love!As it begins to reach that time back on the Human Realm, however, she learns the Boiling Isles has not a holiday, but an irregular force of nature known as called ‘Valeween’, where the Witches and Demons of the Isles gather together, share food, and... Board up their houses and windows.In a truly Boiling Isles twist, Valeween signifies the arrival of the Cherubim - A swarm of insect-like creatures which shoot beams at people and drink a blue goo from them - A side effect of which being that anyone affected is forced to give their honest thoughts and feelings to those that they see - And in many cases, give in to impulse.Why is everyone so scared of this day? Why have the trees gone black? And why is Amity so on edge?
Relationships: Amity Blight & Luz Noceda, Amity Blight & Willow Park, Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Boscha & Luz Noceda, Boscha & Willow Park, Boscha/Willow Park, Luz Noceda & Willow Park
Comments: 811
Kudos: 1192





	1. Prologue: Auburntide

**_"At least once in a decade, in the season of Auburntide, a force of nature sweeps the Boiling Isles and terrorizes our residents, and with it, invites the tides of change. We call this day 'Valeween'"  
\- Valeween for Witchlings, Page 1, An Introduction_ **

It normally only took Amity an hour or two to complete her weekend homework. Ever since her fourth year at Hexside, Amity made it a point to wrap up her assignments as soon as she got home. That way, the threat of late work no longer hung over her head, and Amity could concentrate on her personal plans or perhaps get in a few hours of private study, depending on her mood.

Right now, however, Amity was on hour four and no closer to finishing. The green-haired witch stared at the blank sheet on her desk, trying to piece together new ingredients for an Abomination. 

“Maybe if I add more manticore venom, I can… No, no...” Amity muttered to herself, crossing out the ingredient on her notes. A thin frown crossed her face and let out a small growl from the back of her throat. “It shouldn’t be this hard! Surely there’s a better way to make Abominations talk?”

In truth, Amity knew which ingredients to use: a simple basilisk fang and a bezoar clump could make an Abomination sing like a songbird. She was the Top Student of the Abomination Track at Hexside, after all– She knew exactly what she was doing.

That only applied to regular witches though; for those without magic, wholly new ingredients were required. A new concoction, something that was never tried before on the Isles, due to a lack of necessity. Now Amity had that necessity, but no clue where to start. 

Amity wasn’t just doing homework for herself, but that of her friend, Luz the Human. Magic wasn’t innate to humans, due to their lack in a bile sac, and as such Luz needed a new method for crafting Abominations. And while Amity would have helped any of her friends, Luz was...

...Very special to her. 

“Oh, Luz,” Amity slumped her shoulders as her cheeks burned oink. Just thinking of Luz’s smiling face made her heart do jumping jacks. “Even when you’re not around, you’ve got me wrapped around your finger.”

_Pitter patter, pitter patter._

Glancing from her textbook, Amity looked out of her bedroom window. Dark clouds were rolling in from the east, and a few stray droplets fell from the sky. When the droplets hit the window panel, they sizzled softly and evaporated on impact. There was the distant rumbling of thunder, and deep inside the clouds, blue-white lightning flickered, like the sky itself was ready to explode. 

A storm had arrived, and just from a glance, it was clearly a _large_ one at that. 

“... Oh, for Titan’s sake,” Amity grumbled, snapping her notebook shut. The weather oracle predicted clear skies for the rest of the week. Yet the size of the thing was enormous – Even from her desk, Amity should have noticed the storm before now. 

With a twirl of a finger, Amity cast a spell circle and summoned a brass bell, which was encrusted with an eyeball-like gemstone. She gave it a single ring, and after a few seconds, a knock came on her door.

“You may come in, Beckham.”

With much grace and poise, a three-eyed butler entered Amity’s room. The butler gave a respectful nod and said, “You rang, Ms. Blight?”

“Yes, thank you for arriving so quickly. As always, you’re swifter than the wind, Beckham,” Amity said, giving the butler a smile of gratitude. 

“No thanks is required, Ms. Blight.” The butler’s shoulders relaxed. So often, he found himself acting stiff and formal inside Blight Manor, but around Amity, the butler found he could breath more easily. Out of all the Blights, Amity was the only family member who treated staff with total decency and respect.

Still, Beckham had to show some level of decorum, and thus spoke in a solemn tone. “Was there something you needed, Miss?”

Nodding her head, Amity said, “Yes. By chance, have my parents prepared a barrier spell over Blight Manor yet?”

The butler shook his head. “No, Ms. Blight. For what reason would they need to do that?”

Shifting in her seat, Amity pointed out the window. The Boiling Rainstorm was moving quickly now, rolling over the hills and forest like a tidal wave of sound and fury. In only a matter of minutes, it would be on their doorstep, and while it wasn’t raining yet, surely the heavens would let loose a deluge. Boiling Rain was known to peel off the paint and roofs of buildings, if it didn’t outright destroy small, unprotected houses, and while Blight Manor was better crafted than most, even it would suffer in a heavy downpour.

“That’s why. Please instruct Mr. Elliot, Ms. Thornton, and everyone else to prepare. Come find me when everyone is informed. Er...” Amity paused for a moment, then said, “I don’t suppose you’ve seen my brother or sister around? They’d be a big help.”

“I’ll double check if Mr. Edric and Ms. Emira are home, but they may be off cavorting with their friends. You know how they are.”

“Tch. Of course they are. Ed and Em always hang over my shoulder when they wanna play, but when I actually need them? I'd have better luck trusting a Slitherbeast to guard a goat." Amity clicked her tongue in annoyance and rubbed her temple, but she nodded back to the butler. “Thanks again, Beckham. I really do appreciate your help.”

“Any time, Ms. Blight. I’ll inform you once the staff is prepared.” Said the butler, who gave another nod before whisking out of the room. 

Once Beckham was out of the room, Amity swivelled in her seat, rose from the chair, and stalked over to the bedroom window. She stared outside, her golden eyes narrowed. With a slow and steady hand, Amity pulled the bun out of her hair and shook her head, letting her green-and-brown locks fall down in a messy bush.

Normally, Amity preferred her neat-and-orderly look, but whenever a boiling rainstorm swept through the Isles, her hair grew uncomfortably hot. Put it down to the magical electricity that floated through the air and the humidity the storm brought with it. Besides, it’s not like her mother was around to tell her off right now.

Not that Mrs. Blight had ever needed much of an excuse. 

Her eyes on the encroaching storm, Amity muttered to herself, “Where did that thing even come from anyways? It just appeared over the horizon...”

Pretty soon, the chorus of running feet filled the halls of Blight Manor as people ran to-and-fro, preparing for the imminent storm. In the laundry room, maids brought damp clothes from the drying racks outside, while the stablehands brought the griffons back into the barn. Windows were snapped shut, and potted plants were taken from balconies.

To be perfectly honest, however, Amity didn’t care one lick about the Manor. For generations, Blight Manor stood tall and proud, unchanging in the face of emperors and conquerors, madmen and bloodheart tyrants. So long as the winds of fate were favorable to them, and money and magic still had power, the Blights always found a way to crawl and cheat their way to the top, standing on the peak of society as noble gentrymen and talented witches, even if they had to step on people in the process. The family Manor was simply an extension of this immutability, of their solid character, of the decades of vice and corruption they mired in. 

Maybe once upon a time, it had been well deserved. A testament to how their ancestors contributed to the development, improvement and security of the Isles– at least, Amity liked to think so. Now it stood as a testament to everything wrong about the Isles nowadays 

If Amity had her way, she would sooner tear this whole place to the ground, or better yet, set fire to Blight Manor and burn it all to naught but ash. For this place was as much a prison as a home to her, and Amity wanted nothing more than to wipe the slate clean, to pull her family name out of the muck and take true pride in being a Blight. 

The main reason Amity sounded the alarm was to spare the servants from her parents’ wrath, for Mr. and Mrs. Blight thought nothing of throwing them out on the street. Beckham, Mr. Eliot and the rest were relatively new hires, for it was ‘in fashion’ now for every well-to-do family to have servants, even though magic rendered most of their duties redundant. 

Before their arrival a few years back, the Blights had only a few servants in their employ– a chef to cook, a maid to clean, and a family tutor for Amity and the Twins’ early education. In reality, the Manor staff were more akin to fashion accessories, or decorative furniture– something to show off at a fancy tea party, and someone to Mr. and Mrs. Blight to bark orders to impress their equally snobby socialite friends. 

Honestly, the whole concept disgusted Amity to her core, but over time, she had grown close to a few of the servants, and just like them, she knew the fear of disappointment. 

And for a fleeting second, Amity remembered a pair of unfeeling eyes, of cold words spoken by black lips, of a flash of blue light, and the shattering of glass.

Amity shook her head and groaned under her breath. 

“ _What am I doing, thinking of that memory now_ ?” Amity thought. “ _The past is dead and buried. It’s better that way._ ” 

Delusions were cast aside, and it was better that they were. At least Amity knew where she stood in the grand scheme of things, and didn’t hold out hope for something that would never be given to her.

No, what Amity really cared about was that this storm put a damper on her plans with Luz. Even after all the time she spent on the Isles, Abominations was Luz’s worst subject at Hexside – She could barely make her Abominations rise from the ground and stumble around, but they only accepted the simplest of commands and couldn’t speak a word. And as Luz’s friend, Amity took it upon herself to tutor the human. They had made plans today to practice in the forests not too far from Blight Manor, but it seemed fate had other plans.

With a sigh, Amity pulled out her Scroll and shifted through her contacts until she found the Human’s details. She then brought it to her ear and waited. Mercifully, she didn’t have to wait long before a warm, dulcet voice filled her ears.

 _“Hello?”_ said Luz, her voice on the other line. _“Amity, is this you?”_

“Yes, Luz. Hi!” said Amity. She put a hand to the glass as the Boiling Rain hit the opposite side of the window, which was specially designed to resist this type of weather. It would turn into a downpour any second now, and she needed to help with the barrier sooner rather than later. “I’m afraid I’m gonna have to cancel our study session today, there’s a– ”

“ _Boiling rainstorm outside? Yeah, I know.”_ Luz let out a weak chuckle. _“I just got inside myself. Eda had big, big, big plans for the Marketplace today, so she’s pretty miffed. At least we got enough barrier glyphs around the Owl House to keep us safe!”_

“Oh, good! I’m glad you’re safe.” Just listening to Luz’s voice made Amity relax, and while she was still disappointed about today’s cancelled lesson, at least Luz seemed fine with it. “Shall we reschedule then? I already finished my homework, so my weekend is wide open.”

Luz let out a mock gasp. _“You’re done already? Gosh, no wonder you’re the Abomination Track’s Top Student!”_ The human giggled softly. “ _You’re so smart, Amity! I could never challenge your throne.”_

Amity shook her head. “I keep telling you to not sell yourself short, Luz. You only started learning magic a few months ago. With some more practice, I’m sure your Abominations will be the pride of Hexside.”

_“You think so?”_

There was a note of genuine hope in Luz’s voice. While Luz didn’t have some great and nebulous dream about being the ‘Best Witch who ever lived,’ she did ardently wish to be good at magic, to make everyone proud and stand as equals alongside the likes Eda and Lilith. It was part of what Amity appreciated about the human, and with a smile, she nodded her head.

“I do. There’s nothing you cannot accomplish, not if you put best foot forward.” Amity looked down at Blight Manor lawn, where the staff were forming a circle around the premises. She took a hard gulp; She _really_ needed to get down there, like, right now. “So anyways, Luz! What day is good for you? I should imagine the storm will blow over by tomorrow, so– ”

_“Tomorrow works! After I help out at the Marketplace, I’ll drop by! So, does four o’clock work?”_

“Four is fine! I’ll see you then, Luz.”

Luz chuckled. _“It’s a date then!”_

With that, Luz hung up. Amity was left staring at her Scroll in dead silence, her cheeks glowing red hot. Her hand trembled a bit, and with a groan, Amity smacked her forehead.

“‘A date?’ _A date?!_ What did she mean by that?” Amity dragged a hand across her face. Why did this Human have to torment her so? “How deeply am I supposed to read into that? Is she flirting with me, or are all humans that oblivious?”

Then again, this was nothing new for Luz– she would always say things like that that gave Amity pause. The last few months in particular had been hell, trying to figure out if Luz's Human expressions were here actually flirting with her, or if she was looking far, far too deep into something that wasn’t there.

“Oh, _Luuuuz…_ You are gonna give me a heart attack one of these days.”

Sadly though, there was no time for Amity to reflect on her crush, as the Boiling Rainstorm began to cross over the gates. Tossing her Scroll onto her bed, Amity moved and opened the door, only to find Beckham reaching for the door handle. 

“Oh, Ms. Blight,” the butler said, a tad startled. He composed himself quickly, adjusting his bedazzled bowtie. “All the staff have been informed, and we’re underway with preparing the barrier.” 

“I saw.” Amity nodded. “Good work. I’ll assist with the spellcasting and any other jobs that need to be done.” 

“That… Really isn’t necessary, Ms. Blight.” 

“I’m aware. I still want to help.” 

It took a moment, but Beckham’s eyes brightened up just a bit – Like he was surprised someone at the Manor still treated him like a person, and not a machine who was only good for folding clothes or scrubbing the floors. Even though this wasn’t the first time Amity acted like this, it still seemed to surprise the butler every time. 

Beckham nodded and smiled. “Very well then. If you’ll follow me.” 

The pair of them rushed down stairs, threw open the front doors, and ran onto the lawn. Spaced out every three meters or so was a staff member, who were all crafting magical orbs, much like a potter shaping clay or a witch crafting an abomination by hand. Younger or less powerful witches ran between them, laying down a chalk circle. 

While laying down chalk between the family chef and a stablehand, a young witch no older than Amity herself tripped and fell on the grass. Amity recognized the girl from school: Her name was Bo, a student in the Healing Track who attended Gus’ Human Appreciation Society. As far as Amity knew, Bo’s father had come down with a case of Ivory Fever, and to help pay the bills while he recovered, Bo worked in the Manor as a scullery maid. 

To say Amity felt awkward in employing a fellow classmate was an understatement: She was utterly ashamed, and normally she couldn’t string two words together around Bo without feeling the crushing weight of her social status. Amity imagined Bo felt even worse, so Amity avoided the kitchens like a plague whenever Bo was on shift, and they both stayed out of each other's way at Hexside, which led to more than a few awkward run-ins. 

There was no time to worry about any of that though, so with a feeble smile plastered on her face, Amity picked up the chalk liner and pulled Bo to her feet. The brunette Witch dusted herself off and stared at her feet, her face red as a tomato. 

“Uh, thanks, Am– I mean, Ms. Blight. I’m sorry, I’ll be more careful next time. I– ”

Bo stopped when Amity put a hand on her shoulder. The green-haired witch shook her head slowly.

“Please, Bo. You never have to apologize for needing help.” Amity gave a small shrug. “And you can call me Amity. I… I know this whole thing is stupid and awkward and _I hate it_ , but I don’t want you to treat me any differently here than you would in school. Okay?”

The brunette Witch nodded her head automatically. Disbelief peeked at the corner of her eyes, as if Bo feared Amity was pulling some trick or ruse on her, but when she only saw sincere compassion on Amity’s face, her expression softened.

“... Sure thing, Amity. Thank you.”

Taking her chalk liner, Bo finished her job and ran back inside the Manor. Taking a spot between the butler Beckham and Mrs. Madison the Housekeeper, Amity wove a spell circle in the air before moulding her hands around it, weaving her purple magic into the circle until it turned into a magical orb. The orb glowed brightly, and once the last of the chalk was laid down, it shimmered as powerful magic connected everyone in the greater circle. 

In a chorus of voices, Amity and the Manor staff said, “One… Two… Three!”

Together as one, the Witches of Blight Manor tossed their magical orbs into the sky. When they reached the peak of the Manor, the balls connected with a magical crackle, and in an explosion of light, a rainbow barrier expanded over the whole property. The lower clouds of the dark thunderstorm were pushed aside, and not a few seconds later, the heavens opened up and boiling rain ensued, the droplets hissing as they fell on the multi-colored barrier. 

From the Manor came the cheers of multiple Witches, and while the Manor staff patted each other on the back and collected themselves from the draining spell, Amity went through the crowd, thanking everyone for their hard work.

“Thank you, Mr. Elliot. Your hard work is truly appreciated.”

“Daw, it’s nothing, Ms. Blight! Happy to be of service!”

“You have my thanks, Ms. Thornton. I dare say we couldn’t have done this without your knowledge of spell circles.”

“You’re welcome, Ms. Blight. As you know, chalk with a concentration of limestone, salt, and ground up animal bones makes for powerful circles ideal for weather spells like this.”

“Beckham, thank you for rallying everyone in time. You really are fast on your feet.”

“Hah. Perhaps you are right, Ms. Blight. Perhaps you are right.”

Once Amity congratulated everyone on their hard work and the Manor staff returned to their duties, the green-haired Witch noticed a pair of familiar faces hanging out in back. Edric and Emira Blight waved at their sister with playful expressions, and with a frown on her face, Amity stormed up to them.

“Ed, Em. Where were you two?” Amity said with a scowl. “We could have really used your help! What would have Mom and Dad said if the rain melted off the roof, huh?” 

“Woah woah woah, chill out, Mittens!” said Edric. He put his hands up defensively. “Who said we didn’t help out? We totally chipped in, right Em?”

“That’s right! We just joined the circle on the other side of the house, is all.” Emira put a hand across her cheek, as if Amity had slapped her two siblings. “Oh, to think we’d see the day our own sister would doubt us so! What is the world coming to, Edric?”

“Nothing good, nothing good. Have more faith in us, huh Mittens?” 

Edric playfully poked Amity on the nose, but she slapped his hand away. While Edric gasped in mock shock, Amity rubbed the bridge of her nose. Titan help her, her two siblings were positively maddening.

“Fine, yes, I’m sorry for doubting you. Thanks for helping out.” Amity raised an eyebrow and put a hand on her hip. “I don’t suppose either of you know when Mom and Dad are getting home?”

The twins shook their heads with thin frowns across their faces. While Edric and Emira were happy to tease Amity into oblivion any day, it was hard to make light of any situation involving their parents. 

“You know how they are,” said Edric. It was all that needed to be said. Indeed, she did. 

Amity simply clicked her tongue and looked skyward. Above them, the rainbow barrier faintly flickered as thousands of boiling raindrops fell from the sky and beat on it like red-hot needles. Once again, the image of cold, crystal blue eyes drifted unbidden to the forefront of Amity’s mind. Ages ago, Amity remembered those eyes staring so dispassionately at her not long after a storm like this, and whenever it rained, Amity couldn’t help but remember that dark, grim day.

“I hate the rain,” Amity said to no one in particular. She bowed her head and gave it a shake. “At least I can look forward to tomorrow. I wonder if Luz would be interested in hanging out after her Abomination lesson? Perhaps we can go to the Marketplace, or…”

A thought suddenly occurred to Amity. The Boiling Rain… Boiling Rain was rare enough on its own, but… What time of year was it again?

Quickly, she made her way back into the Manor and into her room. Once she had her Scroll back in her hand, Amity checked the date. She gulped hard.

It was that time of year again. Auburntide was here. And this time, the Boiling Rain had arrived. The first sign. 

_“ How long will it stay_ _?”_ Amity thought. She glanced out her window again and watched the rain fall. Maybe it was just a coincidence – There was no guarantee… 

...But all the same, Amity felt a tension grip at her throat. 

“...Please don’t let it be Valeween.” Amity whispered, like she was praying to the Titan. ”Not this year. Not now.” 

* * *

**Authors notes**

**Because this is a joint project, we’d both like to thank you all for reading the prologue and we hope you’re looking forward to this story coming out as we are - Chapter 1 will be released at some point in the next few days once we’ve had the chance to go over it, but we’re both proud of the work we’ve put into this story : D We both have very different writing styles so it's a bit of an interesting mixture for both of us that we're still trying to figure out (and have had more than one argument over, if we don't die on our own we'll probably kill each other) but we've reached a point we're happy with on this prologue and will be working to make sure the next few chapters are as solid as this!**

**Individual Notes**

**[QuirkQuartz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/QuirkQuartz) \- Yep, I’m somehow still not dead! (And I'm in the North of England so God knows how) This story pretty much started as a joke between me and Raphael, and we just decided to make it into a story and here we are– So far I’m responsible for the rough drafts of Chapters 1, 2, and 4, and the art that the fic will be utilizing. This has become quite the project for me because I think we’ve really got something good here and we’ve put in a ton of effort into it, and have been rushing to get it out for the season while not letting the quality drop, so I’m hoping that you’ll all enjoy :D **

**[Raphael Antonello](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raphael_Antonello/pseuds/Raphael_Antonello) \- Likewise, it is a miracle that I am not dead. I haven’t given nearly as much love to my Ao3 account as QuirkQuartz, and I want to apologize to my “Luz Appreciation Society” fans for the delay. When this story came to life, however, QuirkQuartz and I knew that we couldn’t dawdle with the Halloween season upon us. I’ve been responsible for the rough drafts of this prologue and Chapter 3, as well as the chief editor of these stories. I do hope to contribute more to the story in the future, so look forward to that!**

  
  



	2. Forecast

**‘Valeween [Pronounced Veil-ween] occurs within the season of Auburntide. It occurs at least once every ten years, but at irregular intervals. The only way to reliably predict the arrival of Valeween is a series of weather phenomena, starting with a Boiling Rainstorm that lasts for three days…’** **  
****\- Valeween for Witchlings, Page 3, Chapter 1**

****

Sometimes, Luz likened living on the Boiling Isles to living on another planet… Until she really thought about it, and realized that technically, she was. 

Probably, anyway. She assumed that she was on a planet. If somehow, the Boiling Isles wasn’t located on a planet, but.... On something else, she couldn’t say that she would be entirely surprised at this point. That honestly wouldn’t have been the weirdest thing to learn about this place. But going back to her analogy, there had always been the absolute barest levels of familiarity that somehow both made the place even more bizarre, but gave her something to hold onto and let her integrate herself into daily life. 

The languages spoken on both sides of the Realm were virtually identical in every way, aside from some naming conventions and the occasional new word. There were similar sorts of buildings, from libraries to schools, to castles and stadiums. And because Luz had thrown herself into the world of fantasy back home that drew from mythology and legends, the Boiling Isles had a few recognizable aspects to her. Like the existence of Griffons, monsters, and of course, Magic. 

Of course, she was still in another Realm, and that was where the few similarities ended. Everything else was beyond different - From the variety of Witches with inhuman characteristics that functioned as part of regular society, to the wild architecture of every building, to the very ground they walked on being the body of a Titan, as opposed to the earth back in the Human Realm.

Easily though, one of the most noteworthy differences was the weather between the two worlds, and that was the source of Luz’s current frustrations. 

Over the past three days, a huge, intense thunderstorm had swept over the Boiling Isles, blanketing the island in Boiling Rain. Every Witch, Demon, Palisman, and everything else in between was trapped indoors, forced to wait out the storm, and Luz was no exception. Being the energetic and outgoing girl she was, she felt trapped within the walls of the Owl House, her home made a prison, but if she as much as stepped outside, she would be covered in nasty burns. Whether she liked it or not, Luz was stuck. 

If it wasn’t for the invention of the Crystal Ball, Luz wouldn’t have been able to keep in touch with her friends, and the young human would have gone completely stir-crazy by the end of the third day. 

“Uuuuugh, I never thought I’d miss school,” Luz muttered, dragging her hands through her hair before face-planting on the desk. The magical blue light of the Crystal Ball filled Luz’s bedroom, casting shadows on the wall that were just as frustrated as she was. 

Granted, she actually liked school here, but that was beside the point - People weren’t supposed to miss going to school! 

She groaned, and looked up at the Crystal Ball. “I have no idea how you guys put up with this all the time.”

 _“You get used to it,”_ Willow said while chuckling, her head floating in the Crystal Ball. _“I’m sure Earth’s weather would be as weird to us as our weather is to you.”_

“Rain back on Earth doesn’t burn you.” 

_“I rest my case.”_

“ _Fascinating_.” Gus declared, holding up a pencil and notepad, quickly jotting the new information down. 

“It’s a lot more common back there too, I guess.”

 _“I hear you get pretty crazy phenomena on Earth! Is it true that it rains cats and dogs?”_ His face flickered like smoke - The reception at the Owl House had a habit of being poor when the weather was like this. 

_“Wait, seriously?”_ Amity perked up, an eyebrow raised at the statement. _“How in the - Wh - What? How does that even work? There are… So many things wrong with that.”_

Luz couldn’t help but laugh at her friends’ confusion over such a simple phrase. “It’s just an expression for when there’s a really bad storm. Kind of like what's going on outside now.” 

There was a pause for a few seconds, during which both Amity and Gus’ heads turned from the Crystal Balls as they looked out their respective windows. Gus’s brow burrowed into itself, while Amity raised an eyebrow questioningly. 

_“I - I don’t get it.”_ Gus admitted. 

_“Me neither.”_

“Yeah, it doesn’t make much sense to me either to be honest. I have no idea where it comes from.” Luz shrugged. A lot of sayings on the Boiling Isles tended to be a lot more literal than back on Earth, and it was still a thing she was getting used to. “But it's not just the rain anymore either! Eda told me there was a Gorenado sighting off the coast of the Knee. Thank goodness it’s not closer to town…”

A thin frown crossed Amity’s lips. The images of Gus and Willow flickered one after the other, and each of them wore concerned expressions. When Amity spoke again, it was in a more sombre tone.

_“Hey, you guys… You - You don’t suppose…?”_

_“We are due for another visit…”_ Willow said, in an uncertain voice. _”But - “_

 _“Sshhhhh! Don’t even_ mention _them!”_ Gus put a lip to his fingers and hissed, loudly. _“You know it’s bad luck to talk about them, you’re gonna jinx us!”_

“Hm? Who is ‘them?’ What are you guys talking about?” Luz said, raising an eyebrow. Picking up the Crystal Ball, Luz gave it a hearty shake. “Come on, guys, don’t leave me out of the conversation!”

 _“Nope!”_ Gus said, making an X with his arms. _“We’re not jinxing this! No way, no how!”_

“Jinxing what? What’s going on?!” 

_“Er, it - I’ll explain it later. Hopefully tomorrow. Don’t worry about it,”_ Amity tried to assure her, shaking her own head. _“Forget that I said anything.”_ Leaning forward in her seat, Amity said in a strained voice, _“So, uh, Willow!”_

_“Hm?”_

_“I’ve been meaning to ask - How’s Herbology 101 going?”_

_“Oh, it’s been going just fine, thank you! We were going to be starting practicals this week but the rain put a stop to that.”_

_“I hear Boscha is taking the same class.”_

_“She is.”_

_“Has she caused you any problems yet?”_

_“No, things are going smoothly!”_ said Willow, putting on an optimistic grin. _“I’m not sure what she’s getting out of it, but she’s been fine. She hasn’t bothered me in months. She didn’t even bother me when we had to work on that joint project a few months ago.”_

 _“I’m still suspicious of her.”_ Gus said. _“Doesn’t it seem like she just sort of…”_ He snapped his fingers. _“Stopped being a bully like that?”_

 _“I haven’t paid much attention to be honest.”_ Willow admitted. _“Like I said, we worked together on that joint project well enough. We’re about as good as we’re going to get I think. I’m much more interested in figuring out the perfect fertilizer solution for my carnivorous plants. Lycus has a nitrogen deficiency, the poor fella.”_

 _“I’m relieved.”_ Amity let out a sigh, and let her shoulders slump. _“So, you’ve not had any issues with her whatsoever?”_

Willow raised an eyebrow, clearly perplexed - Hadn’t she just answered that? _“No? Why? Did someone say I had?”_

 _“No, it…”_ Amity paused for a second. _“I heard some rumours, the day before the rain came.”_ She explained. _“It - It’s only a rumour, but some people are saying she’s been keeping a closer eye on you than usual. Someone said they caught her staring at you in Herbology. Someone else said they saw her take a picture of you with her Scroll.”_

 _“Wait, she’s doing_ what?” Willow said, in a much more worried voice. _“When did this start? How did I not notice?”_

 _“Why didn’t you say something sooner?!”_ Gus asked, leaning in close to his Crystal Ball. _“This sort of seems like the kind of thing you should have told us right away?!”_

 _“I - I meant to! I’m sorry, I just…”_ Amity seemed to shrink on the screen. _“...I’ve had a lot on my mind these last three days.”_

The conversation had moved ahead and onto a new topic, and Luz had left her curiosity behind her once Amity brought up Boscha being in Willows class. So she didn’t think to link that statement with ‘them’. 

Both Gus and Willow did though, and they gave each other a look, and when they turned back to Amity, their expressions had softened. A wordless, motionless understanding between Witches that was lost on Luz. 

_“I… I just thought you’d want to know, if you didn’t already.”_ Amity said, a bit quieter now. _“You said she’s not been causing you trouble but…”_ She didn’t know how to finish her sentence. Luckily, it got the job done either way. 

Willow groaned and buried her face in her hands. The blue-haired witch looked quite frustrated, as if she shouldered the weight of a thousand idiotic Witches. When she rose her head up, Willow pursed her lips in a tight frown.

 _“I’ll… Keep an eye out. Thanks, Amity.”_ She gave the other Witch a nod, before she sighed. _“What even is her problem with me anyways? I swear, all that girl thinks about is sports, popularity, and getting on my nerves…”_

“Don’t worry, Willow!” Luz said, pounding her fists together. “Boscha won’t lay a finger on you, ‘cause we got your back! Witches who mess with our crew get stitches! Right, Gus, Amity?”

_“Right!”_

What could only be described as a pained smile appeared on Amity’s face, but she nodded all the same. _“You’ve been stuck indoors for too long. Eda is rubbing off on you.”_

“You’re darn tootin’!” Luz groaned and slumped in her seat. “I love chatting with you guys, but it’s not nearly as fun as hanging out!” The Human glanced out the window, hoping to maybe see a sign of the rain letting up. 

No such luck. 

“Uuuugh, when is this rain gonna end? I wanna explore the Isles again, wander through the Marketplace, or learn more magic! Heck, I’ll even take getting chased by Gremlins again at this point!” 

_“I, er, can’t say anything about Gremlins, but I keep telling you your Magic is constantly improving.”_ Amity said, giving Luz a fond grin. _”It took me years to get my Abominations to the level they’re at. You’re a lot further than I was, considering how little time you’ve spent training them.”_

_“....I can’t tell if you’re insulting her or-”_

_“She has Abomination classes maybe twice a week, Gus, and she can make one that can at least stand up. It took me until I was six to do that, and that was with personal tutors.”_

Luz laughed and shook her head.

“Maybe, but there’s no way I could ever match your Abominations, Amity! You make it look so easy!.” Luz leaned forward and gave a mirthful grin. “All my progress is thanks to having the best tutor on the Boiling Isles!” 

_“Eda is an impressive tutor, true, but - “_

“Wasn’t talking about Eda.” Luz smirked.

A pink blush crossed Amity’s cheeks, and the green-haired Witch had to look away before she was blinded by Luz’s grin, which shone like the sun. 

“Eda’s great,” Luz carried on, “But she’s not the one teaching me how to do Abominations right now.” 

_“...A teacher is only as good as the student, Luz. You’ve earned your skill through hard work and determination, just like I did._ ”

“Oh, don’t be so modest! No offense to Mr. Blanc, but his lessons are pretty boring. But you like Abomination lessons fun and exciting!” Luz tapped the Crystal Ball as she rattled off a short list of her private tutoring sessions with Amity. “Like the time you taught me how to properly command an Abomination with a game of Simon Says, or the time I learned the history of abominations through a sock puppet theatre?”

Gus blinked. _“Wait, what?”_

_“Luz!”_

_“Hold on - ‘Sock puppet theatre?’_ _Why Amity, I didn’t know you were an actor!”_ said Willow. She shot a knowing grin at Amity, whose blush only deepened.

_“I-It just the one time! I-I haven’t played with dolls since I was five, honest!”_

_“Yeah, uh-huh, sure.”_

_“Willow!”_

_“Amity.”_

The green-haired Witch trembled with embarrassed rage, but Willow remained as smug as ever. Gus could only stare in confusion at the girls’ spat, and Luz simply kept rambling off all the fun ways Amity taught her the wonders of Magic and Abominations. 

“... And there was that one time we shaped Abominations like people. I made my Abomination look like Eda, but yours was a dead-on impression of me! Only, like, ten times prettier!... Is it weird that I wanted to smooch Abomination… Me?” The human looked at Amity, one eyebrow raised. “Hey Amity, help me out here, did you ever wanna smooch and Abomination that looked like you, and, follow up question, did you wanna smooch Abomination Luz too, or am I just being narcissistic?” 

Amity opened and shut her mouth like a fish out of water. With her body trembling, Amity then clapped her hands over her crystal ball, and the green-haired Witch’s face disappeared in a puff of smoke.

_“I - I gotta go! Chat later!”_

Luz blinked in confusion. Did she say something wrong? She frowned slightly.

“...Horrifically and creepily narcissistic then, right, got it.” She muttered to herself. 

_“Ehehe, if you say so, Luz. If you say so,”_ Willow chuckled and shook her head. 

Gus shrugged on his side of the crystal ball. _“Who can tell sometimes? Amity’s weird. I’ll never understand her.”_ A flicker of his ears grabbed Gus’s attention, and after a second or two, he turned back to his friends. “Actually, I’ve gotta head out too; Gotta help my mom cook dinner. We’re having spaghetti and eyeballs tonight!”

The image of Gus was snuffed out like a candle, leaving only Willow in his place.

“See you, Gus!” Luz called after him, before she looked at Willow and shivered. “...I … Really hope that that ‘eyeballs’ part was just the name of some brand or something.” 

Willow nodded her head. “I should get going too, I still have a bunch of chores to do, and a lot of hungry plants here. I’ll see you later, Luz!”

“Bye, Willow!” Luz said, waving to her friend as she vanished too. 

And with that, Luz was once again alone, stuck inside the Owl House with nothing to do. The Human girl sighed, and glanced at her bed, which looked oh-so-welcoming right now. 

“...I wonder what Eda’s doing? Maybe we can practice our glyphs together before it gets too late?” Rising up from her desk, Luz headed for the bedroom door. “Anything is better than just lying around, wasting away to nothing!”

With that, Luz continued her day, fighting against the oppressive confinement of the Owl House, and outside it continued to rain, rain, and rain down upon the Boiling Isles, the hiss of boiling water faint in the air.

* * *

The next day, Luz woke up later than usual. A messy sleep schedule was common during long stretches of boiling rain. Without the sun or outdoor activities to keep Luz busy, time simply slipped away and lost all meaning – Eda, King, and Lilith all agreed that it was a common phenomenon during long stretches of Boiling Isles weather, so Luz wasn’t overly surprised when she noticed that the clock read ten AM, nor did she feel too too badly about it. 

Sitting up in bed, Luz yawned and opened her eyes, only to instantly shut them again and let out a cry when they were hit by a bright light.

“Yeowch! _Por el amor de- Ow_ , that stings!” Luz said, rubbing her eyes frantically. When she opened them again, she shielded her eyes with a hand and peered into the light. It took her a few seconds to realize what she was looking at, but to Luz’s delight, the light source came from her bedroom window. 

_She was looking at the sun._

Rising onto her feet, Luz made her way to the window, and sure enough, the grim thunderclouds that haunted the skies over the past three days were gone. The sky was completely clear without a single cloud to darken the orange-blue sky that Luz had grown oh-so familiar with. She threw her hands up, ready to cheer...

…Only to notice that the neighbouring forest had turned black as coal. Everything was once colourful and full of life around the Owl House was now dark as the midnight sky, stretching out before Luz like a bottomless black ocean.

“...Whoa.” The Human said, lowering her arms. “That’s… New.” 

Normally, the forest that surrounded the Owl House was reddish orange in hue, almost rusty in colour, but all of that had completely vanished. Now the leaves resembled charcoal, and were indistinguishable from one another, as if each individual leaf blended together into a solid mass, as if the forest was a single, giant creature of black vegetation. The black forest brought visions of a dark beast in Luz’s mind, a beast that stalked Luz’s home like a hungry predator on the prowl.

Not only that, but the forest was utterly still. There were no sounds of insects, nor the chittering of woodland creatures. Even when a breeze blew across the forest, the trees did not bend, nor did leaves fall off the branches. 

Everything was stiff as stone, almost as if time itself had stopped across the forest. 

The very sight of this black forest unsettled Luz, and the more she stared at it, the more she felt the forest …

...Was looking back at her. 

Before Luz could dwell too much on that thought, her phone let out a single chime. Luz jerked her head around, and spotting her phone resting on the nightstand, she stared at it. Her phone hadn’t done… Anything like that in…

.... She didn’t know how long. Time was so slippery nowadays, slipping through Luz’s hands like sand. And yet, Luz felt a silent tug in her heart, as if invisible strings pulled her towards the phone. 

With a sweaty hand, Luz picked up the phone and opened it. It was a calendar notification - One she had set for herself - and in bold text, a simple message written in black-and-orange font read as such:

_‘T-MINUS THREE DAYS TO HALLOWEEN~~!!’_

In that moment, Luz felt her heart go numb. Under any other circumstance, that notification would have made her squeal with joy and sparked excitement in her soul. But right now, it only made her feel ill. 

Six months. 

That was how long she’d been on the Boiling Isles. 

_Six. Whole. Months._

Ever since the portal was destroyed, Luz had used her phone as little more than a video diary. Perhaps subconsciously, she avoided looking at the date, refusing to acknowledge just how long she had been stuck on the Isles. The notification simply reminded Luz of the ever-present reality she let herself forget.

Back on Earth, it was late October. She should have been home three months ago.

 _“..._ Mom must be going crazy without me,” Luz said, quietly, the thought slipping past her lips without permission of her brain or mouth. The young girl gripped her hands tightly and hung her head. “...I wonder how she’s holding up? She must be worried sick right now…”

Her good mood now completely deflated, Luz returned to the window and looked out at the black forest. Right about now, the leaves on Earth must be changing colour too, from a vibrant green to the orange, auburn, and red of autumn. Really, it made sense that the Boiling Isles were no different, even if the black leaves were far creepier.... And a lot faster. It was just another reminder of the passage of time, and made these past six months feel all the more... Real. 

Honestly, it had been months since Luz had even really thought about the Earth. Hell, she couldn’t even remember the last time she’d make a video diary entry! She was so engrossed in her life on the Boiling Isles that her life on Earth was like a distant memory, certain to be forgotten...

…What if Luz forgot her own mother?

That thought sent a cold shiver down Luz’s spine, and she shook her head. Of course Luz wouldn’t forget her mother, she loved her! Surely one of these days, she would find a way to Earth! 

It just… Hadn’t come up for a while. 

But for now, there wasn’t any harm in thinking of the Boiling Isles as her home away from home, right?

After all, Luz would be lying if she said these weren’t the best six months of her life. Not only did she meet a kooky old witch and cutie-patootie demon who were like a second family, not only did she learn magic and attend a crazy school for witchcraft like every fantasy novel Luz ever read in her life, and not only did she make amazing friends who she could trust with her life, but Luz finally found a place where she belonged. 

It wasn’t a home away from home. 

Whether she was born here or not, the Boiling Isles were Luz’s home, and a glance around her bedroom confirmed this: no longer did Luz stay in a broom closet, or sleep in a sleeping bag. When it became apparent that Luz’s stay would last longer than originally thought, Eda cleared out a spare room and furnished it for her pupil. The room had tiny items and trinkets that Luz collected over her adventures, as well as photographs of Luz, Eda, King, and the rest of her found family. 

This was Luz’s room now. Her room… In her home. 

Then again...

Luz shook her head. She didn’t want to think about this anymore. Eventually, Luz would find her way home to Earth, but there wasn’t much she could do now, so there wasn’t any point in thinking too much about it, right? A sigh still escaped Luz though, and the human found it hard to feel enthusiastic about the morning sun.

“Alright alright, you knuckleheads! Listen up, ‘cause I’ll only say this once!” 

The sudden shout of Eda’s voice made Luz jump and yelp aloud, as if her mentor’s words were directed at her. Beyond Luz’s window, she heard the loud clapping of hands as Eda bellowed like a drill sergeant. The human poked her head out the window and looked down at the Owl House front lawn, where King, Lilith, and Hooty were assembled in a straight line, their backs straight in a military fashion. 

Pacing in front of them was Eda, who wore a spiked helmet that simply refused to lie down flat; the Owl Lady’s grey mane of hair was simply too big and puffy for that. Eda scowled at her family like they were greenhorn recruits who didn’t know the difference between a sabre and a bayonet.

“It’s that time again – You know the drill!” Eda declared. She pointed at her sister Lilith, who struck the most noble figure of the lot. “Lily, you’re with me. We’re gonna fortify the outside, make sure we’re ready for anything!”

“There were some special defences that we practiced in the Emperor's Coven for this situation. I can set them up here.” 

“Perfect.” Eda nodded with a pleased smile across her face. As she spoke, Eda slung an axe over her shoulder, which looked perfect for hacking down trees or perhaps tree-like monsters. Either way, Luz didn’t want to be on the opposite side of that axe.

Turning to the two demons, Eda said, “Hooty, King, you’re on scavenger duty: If you find any plants in the forest that are still colourful, grab ‘em and bring ‘em here. If I can make any last minute potions, maybe they’ll be useful.”

"Finally, I get to be a part of something! _Hooty hoot!_ "

“You can count on me! I will leave no stone unturned, I will dig into the very heart of the forest if I have to!” said King with a war-cry. “No colourful, leafy plant will escape this fierce demon when he’s on the prowl!”

“That’s the spirit!” Eda said, pumping a fist in the air. “Give ‘em hell, you two!”

Grabbing a nearby shovel, King ran into the forest with Hooty not far behind, the house demon’s worm-like body extending from the Owl House’s front door. The demons jabbered on as they plunged into the forest’s dark depths.

“Beware plants, for I am your doom!”

“I sure hope there’s some juicy acorns left! I wanna enjoy some Acorn Tea while we wait out the apocalypse, hoot!”

Luz watched this all go down, and as the Witches and Demons went about their tasks, Luz tilted her head to the side. They all _‘knew the drill’?_ What was that supposed to mean? What was going on?

She blinked. _Was this some Boiling Isles equivalent of Halloween?_ Once that thought entered Luz’s head, there wasn’t anything that could get it out. 

Back on Earth, Halloween was the single best holiday– Free candy, weird and creepy costumes, and it was like, the one time of year where it was not only acceptable, but encouraged that everyone be an absolute weirdo. The weirder you were, the more candy you got! It was the perfect time of year for people like Luz. 

So how did the Boiling Isles handle all this? 

As curiosity consumed her, Luz quickly got herself dressed, dashed down the stairs, and climbed out a window - While Hooty was out hunting, the House Demon… Very much didn’t like it when people opened the front door, and Luz was just willing enough to oblige her friend.

The moment that Luz stepped outside, Eda returned. Over her shoulder, she carried several wooden poles, and with an axe at her side, it didn’t take a genius to figure out Eda was chopping wood. 

“Ah, Luz,” Eda said, leaning the poles against the Owl House. “Nice of you to actually join us. Sleep well?”

“What’s going on?” Luz asked, an excited smile on her face. “Are you setting up decorations? How can I help, I wanna help!”

“Decorations? What, like a giant bullseye? ” Eda’s eyebrow raised as she looked at the human in bewilderment. “If this is some kind of joke, you’ve picked literally the worst time to try your hand at stand-up.” 

Luz rolled her eyes, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “I mean, it’s nearly Halloween! Of course you’d set up decorations. What are the poles for? Are you gonna stick jack-o-lanterns on them, like we’re putting people’s heads on stakes?”

“Hallo _-what?_ What in the heck are you talking about, k– “ Eda stopped for a second, then slapped a hand over her grey eye. “Oh, that’s right, you wouldn’t know. I keep forgetting you haven’t always been here.” 

Suddenly, it occurred to Luz that the Boiling Isles might not celebrate Halloween. She had just jumped to that conclusion entirely on her own. So much of what was normal in her world didn’t have an equivalent in this Realm – No one had known what a high five or a hug was supposed to be here, so of course that would extend to holidays. 

But if that was the case, then what was going on here?

“Wait. If this isn’t for Halloween, then – What’s this whole ‘serious drill sergeant’ attitude for?” Luz asked. “What’re you doing with all those poles? Why was Lilith talking about fortifications?” 

A worried expression flickered across Eda’s face, but only for an instant. She ran a hand through her grey hair, reaching into it to pull out an oversized knapsack that had no right fitting in such a small space. Eda checked the inside, nodded, and passed the bag to Luz. 

“I’ll explain it later kid, I promise, but right now we’re on a time limit. I need you to run into Bonesborough and deliver some packages.” The Owl Lady rested a hand on Luz’s shoulder and gave it a firm squeeze. “This is important, okay Luz? A lot of people are relying on these potions. Have you eaten?” 

“N - No?” 

“Then get yourself some breakfast in town. Just make sure that everyone gets their packages today, got it?” 

“Er, r - right.” 

Luz gulped, slinging the bag over her shoulder. Eda wasn’t usually this serious – Normally she would have cracked a joke about Luz not having her head screwed on straight or something - And would then unscrew her own head just to make the point stronger. Whatever was going on here, Luz already felt that it was less wholesome holiday fun than she expected. 

Still, Luz was never one to disappoint and she gave Eda a quick salute. “O - Of course! You can count on me, Eda!” 

Her mentor’s serious expression faded for a moment, and a softer, kinder smile filled her face. “I know I can, kid. I’ll explain everything when you get back. There’s just a lot of work that needs– “ 

_“Edaaa!”_ Hooty’s shrill voice broke through the conversation between mentor and student, echoing through the dark forest. Eda scowled and glared into the forest.

“We’re having a moment here, Hooty!” Eda yelled back. “What is it?” 

“I was trying to catch something colourful like you said, and then it started running around, and now I’m all tied up, and I think it’s in my feathers! Hoot!” 

“.. _.You’re what!?”_

“I think… I think he’s tangled up in… Himself. Again.” Luz explained, equally as exasperated. “He was probably chasing a rainbow squirrel again.” 

“Uuurgh, I said colourful plants and flowers, not colourful rodents!” Eda groaned, and left her student to help untie Hooty. “Just make sure everyone gets their stuff before sundown, Luz!“ 

And like that, Luz was on her own again, now with more questions than when she woke up.

Whatever put Eda in a tizzy had to be serious, because something big was definitely going down across the Boiling Isles.

Over the past few months, Luz had grown adept at identifying when something was out of the ordinary in this Realm. As the apprentice to a criminal - Formally the most wanted, before she lost her natural Magical abilities - on the Boiling Isles, Luz needed keen senses to notice if someone was trying to pickpocket her, or if a Coven Guard was about to arrest her. Just as importantly, Luz needed to know if a crowd was with her or against her, so Luz had learned how to read groups of people at a glance, whether it was to flee or fight for her life.

The people of Bonesborough gave her neither impression. 

Instead, each and every single person moved quickly and quietly like parts in a well-oiled machine, everyone moving with a clear and definite purpose. There was not laughter or cries of terror, no shouting of cheap goods from merchants or harsh orders given by an officer of the law. The wild, magical chaos that once filled this town was replaced by cold efficiency, and whether people were buying last-minute items from the Marketplace or building fortifications of their own, there was a silent unity that connected everyone together. 

And wasn’t the worst of it. Whenever Luz glanced at people, she saw either wide-eyed fear and uncertainty, like the confused face of a deer caught in headlights, a look of resignation, or a few people who didn’t look in the least bit worried, and somehow, those people looked even more out of place than she felt. Everyone else was panicking on some level, and the air was thick with dread. Normally, the people of Bonesborough were a hardy lot, for they faced terrible monsters and natural disasters on a daily basis, but whatever was happening had even the most fearless of demons rattled. 

Just that atmosphere almost made Luz feel ill through osmosis, and yet all the more curious what was happening. If everyone was caught up in this emergency, whatever the heck it was, it was vital she knew what was going on. She would have asked a few strangers about it, but everyone was so on edge that Luz was convinced if she so much as tapped a Witch on the shoulder, they might freak out like the sky was falling. And probably send her flying into said sky. 

As such, the Human shuddered and focused on delivering the packages instead. Surely she would learn the truth sooner or later. 

After dropping off her fifth package, which turned out to be a potion called ‘Fly-Be-Gone,’ Luz decided to take a break and dropped by the Snack Shack. She ordered a bowl of Mohinga soup, but when she went to pay, the fish woman behind the counter shook her head.

“No. It is on the house,” Said the fish woman. Her voice burbled like she was gargling water in the back of her throat. “Eat and prepare yourself. This year looks to be particularly rough.”

“Prepare myself? What do you mean?” Luz said, tilting her head to the side. “Can you please tell me, I don’t know why everyone’s so jumpy!”

With an easy grace, she pushed her bangs out of her face, only to pull some hair out. Fish weren’t known to have particularly strong scalps.

“I will be with you in only but a moment!” The fish woman called out to someone just behind Luz. Apparently she hadn’t heard Luz’s question. “Please, move on, I must give more food. So many hungry mouths, so little time. Like tiny piranha, they are.” The fish woman gave Luz a toothy grin, exposing needle-like teeth that would make a shark blush. “I love people with big appetites. Take care, child. Don’t let them steal your heart.”

“O-kay. Uh, thank you?” Luz said, waving farewell to the fish woman before finding a seat at a nearby water fountain. It had been an odd exchange, but the Shack had been busy. Luz couldn’t blame the woman for not hearing her. 

Everything was hectic. No one was really taking time to stand still. 

As Luz ate her breakfast, which was surprisingly savoury with a hint of garlic, she looked around Bonesborough some more. To Luz’s surprise, other restaurants like Aberrant Meals and Mr. Rotten’s Meat Emporium also gave away free food. Not only that, but members from every big name coven were out-and-about, helping fortify the town’s defences.

Oh, and the town now had defences. Major ones. 

Witches from the Plant Coven grew tall bushes to cordon off side streets, and thorny vines were laid across roofs like barbed wire. Members of the Illusion Coven turned essential buildings like hospitals and police stations invisible, while the Beast Keeping Coven hauled goods away on the backs of griffons and trained hellhounds to protect places like public utilities and community centres. The Abomination Coven worked side-by-side with the Beast Keeping Coven, and people in the Potion Coven handed out a healing potion to a long line of nervous mothers, fathers, others, and their families. 

Again, Luz didn’t quite know what was going on, but it was as if the Boiling Isles was preparing for a war. 

Just as Luz was finishing off her delicious bowl of Mohinga soup, a familiar voice rose above the hustle and bustle of Bonesborough and caught the human’s attention.

“No, no. You don’t want to make the spell circle too large, or else the spell will be too powerful. That’ll leave you drained and vulnerable, and the last thing anyone wants to see is you getting hurt.”

It was Gus’ voice, and weaving between a few passers-by, Luz made her way to a nearby side street and spotted her friend. 

Gus stood in an alleyway upon a small wooden box. A group of Witchlings formed a semi-circle around him, listening as he patiently instructed them. The Witchlings were around eight or nine years old, and they were all clearly nervous from the silent panic that gripped the city. One of the witches, who had red skin and two sets of eyes, froze mid-spell and frowned as Gus instructed him.

“S-Sorry, Teach. I-I’m still pretty new to this…”

“Ah, it's okay! Everyone has to start somewhere!” Gus gave the group of Witchlings a thumbs up. “Now try again. Smaller this time, and with feeling! Remember, you guys are great! You’ve totally got this!”

The group of Witchlings smiled and nodded before they each cast a spell. They then turned, pointed the spell circles towards a target dummy, and fired.

With a wet _gloop_ , a spray of green acid shot out of the spell circles and struck the training dummy. The dummy dissolved instantly like wet tissue paper, it’s angry monster face melting away like a sad snowman in the middle of July. The Witchlings cheered at their success, and Gus patted the four-eyed witch on the back.

“Way to go, Yarrak! You and everyone else are really getting better!” Gus threw a fist in the air. “Just keep it up and you’ll be just fine this Valeween!” 

Yarrak’s cheeks turned a bright shade of blue at the praise, but a big grin was present on his face all the same. The rest of the Witchlings crowded around their friend and praised him also. The interaction came as a surprise to Luz – In all the time she’d known Gus, she’d never known him to be great with Witchlings. He was crazy smart, sure, but she didn’t take Gus for the teaching type.

Well, not if it didn’t involve teaching people…. Mostly incorrect things about Humans, anyway. 

“Gus! Hey, Gus!” Luz called out, waving a hand in the air. Gus’ head turned towards her. 

“Luz?” A faint frown crossed the young Witch’s lips, but it was quickly replaced by a smile. He quickly turned to the kids, congratulated them again on their hard work, and made his way over to the human. “Luz! I haven’t seen you in person in days! D-Did you have a grow spurt, ‘cause you seem even taller than before!”

The Human laughed lightly, but when Gus didn’t laugh back, she couldn’t tell if he was serious or not. Quick to change the subject, Luz asked, “So, uh, what’re you doing here? I didn’t know you taught kids magic.” 

“I don’t, not usually,” Gus said, scratching at the back of her head. He gestured to the kids, who were all continuing target practice. When one Witchling made a spell circle too big, the spell blew them backwards into their friends, who all collapsed in a pile of limbs. No one was hurt however, and they quickly laughed about it while teasing their clumsy friend. 

“They’re the kids of my parents’ friends, plus a couple of their friends from Hexside. What with Valeween approaching, their parents are too busy, so I offered to look after them.” Gus shrugged. “But they seemed pretty scared for what’s coming, so I offered to teach them some spells to protect themselves. Seemed like the least I could do.”

“But what’s coming?” Luz said, giving Gus a desperate look. She gripped her hands tightly until her knuckles cracked. “Gus, ever since I woke up this morning, everyone has been acting weird. Eda is all serious, King actually listened to her orders, fish women are giving me free food, and all of Bonesborough is on edge, like they’re expecting an air raid any minute now!”

“I… Have no idea what an air raid is supposed to be. Is that more Human weather?”

Luz took Gus by the shoulders and gave him a gentle shake. “No one is telling me anything and I don’t know what’s going on! Please, tell me!”

“It’s Valeween.” Gus answered plainly. Like it was obvious.

Luz blinked and frowned. 

“Valeween?” She repeated the word back, as if tasting it on her tongue. Gus blinked in surprise, and just like Eda, he had clearly forgotten that Luz was a stranger in a strange land. He pointed at Luz.

“Wait, don’t humans have Valeween?” 

“We have Halloween. But when I asked Eda about it, she acted like I was cracking jokes at a funeral!”

“Fascinating.” Gus muttered. He cast a spell in the air that produced a notepad and a pen, ready to take notes. “Tell me, what is this ‘Hollow-een’ like? Are Eens terrible monsters that gouge holes in everything, making everything hollow?”

Luz opened her mouth to respond, but another explosion interrupted her. This time, the explosion was more powerful and worryingly large, enough to shake the whole alleyway.

“Oh no!” Gus yelled before running down the alleyway. “What happened, are you all alright?!” 

When he reached the group of Witchlings, Guz quickly checked them over to make sure everyone still had the same number of limbs and fingertips that they started with this morning. Fortunately, no one was terribly injured and only a few kids had bruises, but as it turned out, a spell had backfired and singed an alleyway black with ash. A few neighbours’ windows were broken, and already angry adults were poking their heads out, wondering what the commotion was about.

While Gus fretted between the Witchlings and the growing mob, Luz decided that maybe her friend was a touch over his head. She certainly didn’t want to distract Gus with questions while he sorted things out, so Luz quietly backed out of the alleyway, whistling under her breath as nonchalantly as possible. 

“ _Sorry, Gus. I’d love to stick around, but I got questions that need answering_ ,” Luz thought. _‘And I’m on a time limit with these deliveries.’_ She looked up at the orange-blue sky and pursed her lips. “Valeween, huh?” She muttered to herself. She had a name for the event at least. 

Now she just needed to figure out what the heck a ‘Valeween’ was supposed to be.

* * *

Once Luz put enough distance between herself and the angry mob, she continued delivering packages. Every time she dropped off a package, the customers gave fleeting thanks before shooing the Human off. A few people refused to answer the door, and Luz was forced to leave their potions on the doorstep. Even people who stayed at home were worried about Valeween and whatever dangers it brought to the Isles.

It was both disappointing and frustrating. After being stuck indoors for three days, Luz longed for the friendly conversations she had previously shared with Eda’s customers, as well as their smiling faces. Not only that, but everytime a door snapped shut in her face, Luz’s curiosity about this strange holiday grew hungrier and hungrier. 

After dropping off the fifteenth package, Luz took a break and rested on a nearby open-air staircase, which connected to an apartment building south of the Marketplace. Luz looked between her feet and the distressingly quiet crowds of people, lost in thought. 

“Valeween, Valeween… What is up with this holiday?” She muttered aloud, fretfully tapping her feet. The holiday sounded like a cross between Valentine’s Day and Halloween, but Luz strongly suspected they had little in common. 

Knowing the Boiling Isles, Valeween was some flavour of great horror, a day of disaster and ruin – Should she even really be calling it a ‘holiday’? It sounded more like a plague than a day of merriment. But if Valeween was such a big deal, why didn’t Luz hear about it sooner, or learn about it in school? Were people that afraid to talk about it?

“Compared to the Gorenados popping around the Isles, or the giant squid attack last month, is Valeween that much worse?” 

Luz sighed. She _really_ should have asked Gus more when she had the chance. She was kicking herself for not doing that now. Well, the faster she completed her deliveries, the faster she could return home and get Eda to explain… Literally anything about any of this. That knowledge gave Luz a surge of energy, and hopping on her feet, Luz clapped her hands against her cheeks.

“Come on, Luz, get it together! If you keep this up, you’ll only be chasing your own tail!” She glanced into the knapsack, pulled out the next package, and quickly read the name and address pasted on the front. “There’s only a few more packages to go! You got this!”

With determination in her eyes, Luz walked through the Marketplace, weaving in-and-out of crowds of people. She was about halfway through when she spotted the familiar mint green hair of a certain Witch, who cradled a large object in her arms.

Finally, another friendly face! A bright smile found its way across Luz’s lips, and raising a hand in the air, Luz ran towards the green-haired Witch.

“Amity! Hey, Amity!” Luz shouted. “Hey, look this way! It’s me, Luz!”

The green-haired Witch turned to face Luz, and in doing so, she revealed what she was carrying: The object seemed to be a long, thin parcel wrapped in brown leather. At one end of the parcel was a rubber block, and at the other was a pale yellow grip. A look of surprise filled Amity’s face as her friend rushed towards her, but it quickly melted into a warm grin.

“Oh, Luz! What are you doing here?” Amity said once Luz caught up to her. “I didn’t think I’d see you here today.” 

“I’m just running deliveries for Eda. I missed you so much!” said Luz, before pulling Amity into a hug. She hadn’t seen her friends in such a long time that she wanted nothing more than to feel their warmth again, and among her friends, Amity was the one Witch Luz wanted to hug the most. 

Probably because Amity was always the one who needed one more than anyone else.

The sudden contact made Amity stiffen up, and once Luz let go, the green-haired Witch’s face was a deep shade of pink. Common as these hugs were, they never became easier for the normally composed Witch to handle. Luz must have noticed the Amity’s distress, because she tilted her head to the side.

“Hey, uh, you okay there? You look awfully red in the face. Sure you’re not coming down with something?” Pushing aside her bangs, Luz placed the back of her hand against Amity’s forehead. The Human pursed her lips, and leaned in to inspect Amity’s eyes, like she’d seen her own mother do with her patients back home. “Hm, you don’t feel hot…”

If Amity’s cheeks were red hot before, they went completely nuclear now. Her golden eyes grew small and her ears flapped like bird wings. The green-haired Witch’s mouth hung open as Luz’s face came closer to her own, their noses so close that they barely just touched. Amity couldn’t help but stare at Luz’s brown lips, which looked so inviting right now…

Before Amity completely lost her mind, she jerked her head back and said, “I, uh, I-I’m fine! I’m just not, just not used to that…. Parallel arm thing you do!”

“...Hugs?”

“Y-Yes! Those!” 

“...I hug you like… All the time though?” 

Amity took a deep breath and put some distance between herself and Luz. “I - I appreciate them, really I do! But, well, people on the Boiling Isles aren’t as… Touchy-feely as Humans. So it kinda feels…”

“... Weird?” Luz frowned. “I - I’m sorry, Amity. I didn’t mean to violate your personal space…”

Amity tightened her grip on the leather-bound parcel in her arms. She shook her head rapidly.

“No, wait, that didn’t come out right! I - I like your ‘hugs,’ I do! But…” Amity’s brow knotted with concentration. The Witch looked like she was performing mental gymnastics on an Olympic level. “I only ask… You ask me ahead of time, okay? That way, I can prepare for them. I - I don’t deal well with surprises…”

Amity’s golden eyes shot to the left, as if she suddenly found herself _desperately_ interested in the architecture of the nearest stone wall. The worst of her blush was gone, but her pointy ears still wiggled around. Any random passerby would have recognized Amity’s body language in an instant, but being a Human, Luz missed the signal.

“I can barely tolerate touching my family, but with you… It's different,” Amity said, murmuring like a dormouse. The human tilted her head to the side again.

“Sorry, didn’t catch that last part. What did you say?”

“I said!” Amity bit her lip. The green-haired Witch looked ready to erupt like a Witch-shaped volcano. “... That I missed you too! We should really catch up soon!”

“We should! I still remember how you beat up that hobgoblin for trying to steal Eda’s staff. That seems like forever ago!”

“Luz, it happened last week.”

“... _Has it been that long_ ?” Luz sounded _genuinely shocked_ by that.

The two girls stared into each other’s eyes for a moment before they dissolved into laughter. It felt good to laugh with friends, and simply relish each other’s antics. When the two friends calmed down, Luz pointed to the leather-bound parcel in Amity’s hands.

“So, what’cha got there? Is it some rare magical artefact, the likes of which no mortal man has ever seen before?” Luz wiggled her fingers around for dramatic effect. Amity chuckled and rolled her eyes.

“It’s just something for Valeween. It’s nothing too important..”

With deft fingers, Amity quickly tied up two cords that wrapped around the leather. She made a makeshift strap out of the cords, then slung it over her shoulder. Judging by the cords, it must have come loose. 

“Valeween, huh? I heard about that.” Luz nodded and turned down the street. The two girls appeared to be going in the same direction, so they wordlessly agreed to walk together. “To be honest, I really don’t know anything about it. I just woke up this morning to find things going topsy-turvy at the Owl House and here! 

“Really? Eda didn’t explain things to you?” said Amity. The two girls weaved around a cluster of demons, who were not-so-discreetly selling pixie powder for smokescreen bombs.

“No! No one even told me it was coming! Can you believe that?”

“Well… The signs were there, but we weren’t totally sure until this morning.”

“Eh?” Luz blinked. “What d’you talking about?”

“Valeween… I’m not sure how to explain it to you.” Amity said, mulling over the best way to explain it to a Human who had no frame of reference. “... You know how Grom comes around once a year, and there’s a celebration around it after it’s defeated?” 

“I remember Grom.” 

“Right, well, Valeweens like that but… A lot worse. It doesn’t have an annual date. Sometimes, a whole decade might go by before the next incident, or it can happen two years in a row. Honestly, the only warning we get comes from freak weather patterns.”

Luz’s eyebrow raised. “What kind of weather patterns?” 

“First, we get three days of Boiling Rain, followed by five or more Gorenados that appear across the Isles.”

“...So that’s why we’ve been stuck inside!” Said Luz with a soft gasp.

“Right.“ Amity nodded. “A lot of Boiling Rain isn’t too unusual, and a freak amount of Gorenados is unfortunate, but not unprecedented. There’ve been a few false alarms before, but…” 

Amity licked her lips nervously. This was clearly difficult for her to talk about, and Luz felt the impulse to put a hand on her friend’s shoulder, but she fought against it; right now, Amity clearly needed space.

When Amity spoke again, her voice was more strained. “... Once the trees and plants turn black, it becomes certain: Valeween is upon us, and we have only three days to prepare.”

“So is that why everyone got all… Nervous and change-the-subject-y after I mentioned the Gorenados last night?” 

Again, Amity nodded. 

There was a certain tension to the way Amity talked about Valeween, Luz noticed. Much like Gus, she looked uncomfortable, cagey even, as if simply talking about the holiday invited disaster. However, in Amity’s eyes, Luz saw a deeper fear, an unknowable terror that Luz couldn’t put a name to. It was the difference between someone who knew that hurricanes can destroy lives, and someone who was trapped in the eye of the storm, simply waiting for the winds to return...

“I, uh, it’s a good thing you brought up Boscha then!” Luz said, giving a weak chuckle. She wanted answers more than anything, but not if it meant disturbing Amity. “Not that, uh, Boscha makes for a fun conversation topic…”

“Yeah... Sorry about that.” Amity shook her head. “We would have told you sooner, but it’s considered really, _really_ bad luck to talk about Valeween, especially before we really know its coming.” Taking a deep breath, Amity forced a grin on her face. It looked as brittle as glass. “... Was there anything else you need to know?” 

“I, uh…”

Before Luz could respond, the two girls reached an intersection in the street. In the centre of the street was a tree that just a few days before was coloured in brilliant ruby leaves. It was a humble tree, neither strong like an oak or scraggly like a weed, but it was normally a beautiful tree that Luz liked to visit every time she visited the Marketplace. 

Now, however, those vibrant red leaves were replaced by a noir black. What was once a welcoming figure in Bonesborough was now a grim husk, and the longer Luz stared at the black leaves, the more she felt them draw her in, as if they were sucking Luz’s soul out through her eyeballs. The human closed her eyes and shook her head, and turning to Amity, Luz reached out to pull her away.

Only to witness Amity staring at the tree like it was the spectre of death. The green-haired Witch stood spellbound, horrified at the living proof of the impending disaster. Clearly Luz wasn’t the only one who felt disquieted by the transformation, or felt the weight of invisible eyes.

Silently, Luz put a hand on Amity’s shoulder. The Witch flinched with a gasp, and blinking several times, she remembered herself.

“It’s…” Amity said, as if remembering a bad dream. “The trees. It’s how we know they’re watching us.”

Luz blinked. “Watching? Who is watching us?”

Without a word, Amity walked through the intersection, ignoring the tree like it wasn’t there, and continued on her way. Luz followed after her, but quickly realized that while Amity was turning right, she needed to take a left. For an instant, Luz regretted bringing these packages along.

When Amity noticed that Luz was drifting away from her, a sad expression flickered across her face before it was smothered by grim resignation. To Luz’s surprise, she felt that a kick to the stomach would have been a kinder gesture. 

“Oh…” Amity let out a soft breath. She pointed down the street to the right. With the other hand, she lifted up the leather-bound parcel. “I... I’ve got an appointment for… Yeah. Otherwise I’d…” 

“No, no, I get it. I got stuff to do too,” Luz replied, gesturing to the knapsack hanging off her shoulder. She weakly waved farewell. “I’ll… See you around? I - I still wanna catch up!”

Finding a reserve of enthusiasm somewhere in her body, Luz snapped her fingers and fired twin finger guns at her green-haired friend. She absolutely refused to let this encounter with Amity end on a sour note.

“After all, you still gotta show me how to make Abominations talk! I wanna use them to pass messages between my friends!” Luz scratched her chin thoughtfully. “I wonder if I can train an Abomination to sound just like me?”

“You cannot. Trust me, I’ve tried.”

“What was that?” Luz cupped a hand over an ear. “If you keep talking so low, I’ll never hear what you say!”

“I said, good luck delivering packages!” Amity said, her face red as a tomato. She waved goodbye to Luz as she walked backwards, and winced when her head accidentally bumped into a low-hanging sign. “I’ll tutor you again real– _ow_ – soon! But I’ve um, I’ve gotta go, for the s– appointment! The, the thing! Yes!”

The human waved back, also walking backwards. “Sure thing! Don’t be a stranger now!”

“I won’t! Not ever!”

Neither of them actually looked away for a few seconds, simply content to watch the other girl disappear down the street. It was only when Luz nearly bumped into a pair of Bard Coven witches carrying a piano out of a house that she turned around and walked straight ahead.

If Luz was wholly honest, she had hoped to learn more about Valeween and why it was so dangerous, but she could see that the topic bothered Amity. Over the past few months, Luz learned that Amity was a person that needed her space, whether that be physical or mental. Badgering her friend for information would only make Amity more uncomfortable and more upset, and nothing bothered Luz more than hurting her friends. 

That said, Luz could only imagine what Amity’s last words meant. As Luz prepared to deliver another package, she thought. 

_Who in the world is watching the Boiling Isles_?

* * *

By five o’clock, Luz was on her final delivery. The sun was steadily making its way to the horizon, and Luz’s feet were killing her. She made a mental note: If Eda ever asked Luz to deliver five dozen packages in one day, she was gonna borrow Owlbert.

Emperor’s Coven rules be damned. 

...Huh, Amity was right. Eda really was rubbing off on her. 

“Ugh, my legs are made of lead,” Luz groaned, dragging herself up the street to her final destination, only half convinced that she hadn’t died along the way, risen up, and joined the legions of the living dead. It was only when Luz reached the driveway of the last customer that she roused her senses, and actually realized where she had ended up.

Standing before Luz was a house very familiar to her, for she had visited it countless times these past few months. It was a squat two-story with a small, yet luxurious lawn full of petunias and rose bushes, as well as a garden gnome who lived in an abandoned beehive with his wife and two kids. The house was an earthy brown with a red-tiled roof and twin balconies that housed quaint potted plants. The silk curtains were drawn, but unlike most homes in Bonesborough, which firmly boarded up the windows in preparation of Valeween, the windows here were wide open.

Of all the addresses that Luz expected to find on her list of deliveries, _Willow’s home_ wasn’t one of them. 

“...Huh. Guess Willow’s dads ordered something?” Luz said, glancing at the final package, which was a cardboard box no bigger than a brick. 

Luz had met Willow’s dads many times before, and they were the last sort of people she expected to have… Any connection with a known criminal like Eda. With their black-picket fence lifestyle, the Park family seemed like the furthest people to associate with criminals and rapscallions. 

_‘Or maybe, it's the perfect cover? Does Willow know her fathers are criminal masterminds?’_ Luz thought to herself, before letting out a giggle. Aloud, she said, “Nah, that could never happen! Chances are, Eda is just that good at potions! Who wouldn’t wanna buy stuff from her?”

That said, the closer Luz looked at the Park’s house, the more she worried. Much like the rest of Bonesborough, the houses in Willow’s neighbourhood were heavily fortified with barricades, traps, and magical enchantments that were surely illegal in the eyes of the Emperor’s Coven. All around her, the Boiling Isles was geared up for war, at least until Valeween was over.

The Park’s home… Was the exact opposite of that. The house looked completely undefended and perilously helpless compared to its tightly secured neighbours. Surely they weren’t oblivious to what was going on? Perhaps they didn’t need to be as worried as the rest of the town?

As soon as Luz stepped onto the driveway, however, a giant Venus Flytrap-Vampire Stalk sprouted out of the ground like a killer dandelion. Luz froze as the green monstrosity lowered its leafy head, peering at her with lidless eyes. All Luz could do we gulp. 

“Uh… Who’s a nice… Monster plant… Thing?” 

“Luz!” 

Appearing from the front lawn’s shrubbery, Willow ran towards her friend and stood between her and the giant flytrap. She quickly rubbed its tree trunk-thick stem, and like a puppy dog recognizing its master, the giant flytrap lowered its head down and nuzzled Willow. 

“This person is Luz. You’re not to attack her, do you understand Mr. Bitey?” Willow told the creature sweetly, like a parent might speak to a child. 

The carnivorous plant hummed in response before it retreated underground again, and with another eruption of dirt, popped up in Willow’s backyard, its leafy head just barely visible across the roof. 

With the killer plant gone, Willow sighed and turned towards her friend. “Sorry about that, Luz. Ever since I moved him in the backyard, Mr. Bitey’s gone through biiit of a growth spurt. I promise tha– ”

“Willow!” Like she had done with Amity earlier, Luz pulled the blue-haired witch into a hug. Unlike Amity, Willow returned the embrace and patted Luz on the back. “Oh my gosh, I cannot believe how much I missed this! I really missed seeing your face.” 

“Didn’t we talk over the Crystal Ball just yesterday?” 

“It’s not the same thing, and you know that!”

The Plant Track girl simply smiled and rolled her eyes. She glanced back at Mr. Bitey, who was trying to snatch birds out of the air. “Like I was saying, sorry about that. With everything going on, I haven’t had time to teach him who is and isn’t acceptable prey.”

“Let me guess.” Luz said. “Valeween?” 

“Mm-hmm.” Willow nodded. “What’re you doing here? I thought you’d be helping fortify the Owl House.” 

Reaching into her bag, Luz pulled out and presented the final package to Willow. “Best friend's delivery! Eda sent me out today to deliver last-minute packages. I think it’s for your dads?” 

“Huh.” Willow accepted the package and shifted it between her hands. A glassy _thunk_ came from inside the cardboard box as the potion vial rolled around. “Somehow I didn’t know they were in touch with Eda.” 

“That’s exactly what I was thinking!” Luz smirked and tapped her head with a finger. 

Willow held the package aloft and studied it closely. “I wonder what it is? They didn’t tell me we were expecting a package? And certainly not one right before Valeween!”

The blue-haired Witch shrugged, as if telling herself that she could learn the truth at her leisure. She tucked the package under her arm and leaned closer to Luz.

“Anyways, how are you holding up? This’ll be your first Valeween, right?” 

Luz nodded. “Yeah, but I’m more confused than worried. Everyone acts like it's the end of the world, but I don’t even know what I’m supposed to be afraid of! How can I learn anything if people refuse to talk about it?”

“Didn’t Eda tell you anything?” 

“She said she’d tell me once I delivered everything. The suspense is _killing me_ ,” Luz said dramatically. She then turned to Willow with a hopeful look. “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to explain it to me?” 

The blue-haired Witch chuckled and nodded her head. “I’d be happy to. Come on inside, I’ve got an old book that’ll help.” 

Pumping her fists with excitement, Luz followed Willow into her home and bedroom. As usual, Willow’s bedroom room was decorated with various plants, a few colorful posters to break up the greenery, a bookshelf lined with a variety of magical tomes and scrolls, a dresser littered with knick-knacks, and a desk covered in school work.

Going over to the bookshelf, Willow pulled out a book and glanced it over. Peeking over her shoulder, Luz saw the words _Valeween for Witchlings_ written on the gray fabric cover. The first two words were embossed in gold and the third in red. 

“I’ve had this book since I was a little kid. It’s an abridged version of the adult guidebook, but I still find it useful. It’s not like there’s many books written on the subject, considering. Let’s see here....” Willow said, sitting at her desk. She opened the book and flipped through a few of the pages, muttering under her breath. Luz leaned over her friend’s shoulder, peering at the pages. 

The book was a mixture of pictures and words, but mostly pictures to entertain the eyes of children. It reminded Luz of an old dinosaur book she got for her sixth birthday, which had full-blown pages of _Velociraptors_ and _Triceratops_ with single paragraphs explaining facts about them below. This book was presented in much the same way, though many of the pictures were of Boiling Rain, a trio of closely knit Gorenados, and an aerial photograph of a forest covered in black leaves. 

After about half a dozen pages, Willow nodded and slid the book closer to Luz. “Here we go. Maybe this will answer your questions?”

At the top of the page, the title read ‘The Events of Valeween - An Introduction for the Uninitiated.’

“You see, once every five to ten years,” Willow said, paraphrasing the words Luz read on the page. “We have a Valeween Visit, which we know about three days in advance because– “ 

“Ooh, I know this one!” Luz raised a hand, just like she was in school. “Three days of Boiling Rain, Gorenados around the Isles, and all the trees turn black, right?” 

“Correct.” Willow nodded. “The last phase is solid proof that Valeween is upon us. The first two signs are just side effects of the Cherubim trying to arrive. Sometimes they succeed, sometimes they fail. That’s why we get false alarms some years.”

Luz stared at the other girl. “The - The what and their what now?” 

Willow didn’t say anything. Instead, she flipped to the next page and pointed to the dominant picture that, according to the text above, was a Cherubim.

The creature on the page wasn’t particularly scary by the standards of the Boiling Isles. If anything, it was downright cute: it resembled a tiny angel swaddled in cloth, like a Christmas ornament come to life. The Cherubim had golden hair that masked most of its face, save for a wide grin that went from ear-to-ear. A tiny ball of light hung over its head like a halo, beneath which was a stubby horn. A white-and-green blanket wrapped around its body, and frayed at the bottom like a rose. Four fluffy wings poked out of its back, and altogether the Cherubim resembled a happy baby more than a terrifying monster.

The only remotely scary thing about the Cherubim were the hooks that served as its hands, and even these were small and blunt as a school eraser. Even if it wanted to, Luz doubted this creature could hurt her; at best, a Cherubim could poke her in the eye or mess up her hair. 

Failing to notice Luz’s disbelief, Willow continued talking.

“When you boil it all down, Valeween is a single night where these Cherubim arrive on the Isles,” Willow explained. “They come from the sky, fly down to feed, then they return to whatever world they call home.

“So that’s why everyone is fortifying the city?” Luz said. She then blinked. “Wait, did you say… Feed? A - Are they like vampires or something?! Are they gonna burn down the city if we fight back!?”

“No… But that might happen anyways.” Willow admitted. She flipped another page and pointed to a picture where a smiling Cherubim hit a pair of unlucky witches with a blue beam of light. “The Cherubim have the ability to shoot something we call a ‘Cherubim Ray’. If you’re hit and you see someone, you’re then forced to tell them your brutally honest feelings about them.” 

“...That… Doesn’t sound like the worst thing in the world.”

“It depends on who gets hit. A lot of people lose their inhibitions too.” Willow flipped the page again and showed the two witches bopping each other over the head like an ancient slapstick cartoon. The Cherubim just smiled and watched the ensuing brawl. “Imagine if you work with someone you really, really don’t like. The Cherubim would force you to admit your feelings to their face. A lot of people end up lost in their rage, and when Witches and Demons get really mad…”

“...Chaos sparks. Oh boy,” said Luz. She leaned back and frowned. Luz knew that Eda had a nasty temper once she got going, and she was pretty laidback as far as witches went. If the entire city of Bonesborough fell into a similar rage and spells started flying, there wouldn’t be anything left of the city by dawn. 

“Hm-mmm,” said Willow, nodding her head. “All the traps and boarded up windows aren’t just for the Cherubim: they’re to protect us from each other. Even the friendliest of people has a few secrets, or has a less-than-flattering opinion of someone. I’m not saying we’re all liars, but… Well, sometimes you just gotta grit your teeth and bear with some people in your life, you know?”

Turning back to the book, Willow flipped a page to show a Cherubim landing on one of the afflicted witch’s necks. A glittery blue ooze leaked from a shallow scrape on their skin while the Cherubim sucked it out with a silly straw. With the cartoonish art style of the book, the whole process was hard to take seriously, and Luz doubted an actual silly straw was involved.

“After that, the Cherubim will drink… _Something_ out of their victim. We don’t really know _what_ they’re drinking, whether it's our life force or something else. It’s not blood, and there’s no known means of drawing it out of a Witch or Demon’s body.” Willow shrugged. “The blue ooze evaporates only seconds after a Cherubim is done feeding, so we can’t even study it. It’s just something else that makes the Cherubim that more mysterious.”

Gripping the page again, Willow went to flip it again. A bead of sweat covered the blue-haired witch’s brow.. “And if they drink enough blue goop, they mutate into…” 

Suddenly, Willow snapped the book shut and gave a weak grin. 

“A-Actually, you can find out on your own time! The next picture always made me scared as a kid. It’s somehow even creepier than a full grown Cherubim, ehehehe.”

Willow handed the book to Luz, who accepted it without a word. She shuddered, wondering just how terrifying a full grown Cherubim might be if just a picture scared Willow. Still, she couldn’t help but note...

“...You know, even after all that talk, you don’t seem all that bothered by them,” Luz stated. 

And it was true– compared to Eda’s seriousness, Gus’ unease, and Amity’s thinly veiled fear, Willow barely seemed concerned at all. If Luz didn’t know any better, she’d even say that Willow was almost fond of them. 

“Well…” Willow kicked her feet back-and-forth in her chair and gave Luz a smile. “The Cherubim are the reason my dads got together.” 

“Wait, for real?” 

“That’s what they tell me.” Willow nodded. “Apparently they were too anxious to confess, but after they got hit by a Cherubim Ray, it all came flooding out! It wasn’t exactly the way they wanted to share their feelings, but considering that they’ve been together ever since, I don’t think it was the worst thing in the world. Knowing that, I cannot bring myself to fully hate the Cherubim… plus...” 

Willow bowed her head, and for a moment, it seemed as though she was deciding if she should continue talking. 

“...I know it’s not entirely her fault, but... Sometimes I wish Amity had been honest with me about our falling out. If she got hit by a Truth Beam, maybe a lot of our bad blood wouldn’t have started?” Willow gave a helpless shrug, as if she wasn’t wholly satisfied with her feelings. “If I knew the truth, maybe we could have… worked something out.” 

“I… I’m sure that she wanted to.” 

“I know. She’s not like that anymore. Amity was never a really big bully, but… I still wonder if things could have gone better if she got a little zap-zap.” Willow jabbed the air with two fingers and gave a weak chuckle. “That’s why I try to be as honest as I can. Not only that, but the Cherubim don’t really bother me or my dads during Valeween.”

“They don’t?”

Willow shook her head. “No. They seem only interested in feeding on people with a lot of secrets. The more honest you are, or the less secrets you have, the less likely they are to attack you. I think people would be better off if they were more honest.”

Luz nodded her head. That stance made sense, at least in principle. On a few occasions, Luz hadn’t been totally honest and it usually came back to bite her. The incident with the Slitherbeast on the Knee came to mind.

' _On the other hand…'_ Luz thought. ' _Not everyone is ready to be honest. Sometimes, people wanna tell the truth when they’re good and ready. Not everyone gets a happily-ever-after like Willow’s dads, not when they have their darkest secrets dragged out by some vampire-angel things.'_

Luz thought of Amity and much she kept close to the chest. Before Luz met the green-haired Witch, the only person Amity could be completely honest with was her journal: Whether it was her prankster siblings, her domineering parents, or her fake friends, Amity didn’t have anyone who she could safely confide in. Even after the two girls became friends, it took Amity a long time to open up and trust Luz with her secrets, both the big and the small.

Grom came to the forefront of her mind– before Grom, Luz had never really seen Amity act afraid. Of course she was facing off with Grometheus the Fear-Bringer, the beast who literally brought one’s worst fears to life, but Amity wasn’t afraid of silly things like cats with human faces or milk: Amity was afraid of rejection, of not being accepted by the person she had a crush on - Whoever that lucky sonuva gun was - Amity was afraid of opening up, of being honest with someone only to have her feelings trampled upon, like they didn’t even matter.

It was such a normal fear, but Amity had always kept herself to herself, built up barriers to hide that. And when Luz learned what it was, it became so much more hard hitting. 

...That was probably why Amity was afraid of Valeween. Not only was she terrified of having her secrets exposed, but the prospect of having her autonomy taken away, of being forced to expose her deepest, darkest feelings horrified the green-haired Witch. For a fleeting second, Luz’s heart ached at the thought of Amity living in such fear. 

No wonder everyone was all up in arms across the Boiling Isles: Like Amity, everyone feared having their feelings crushed or hurting the people around them. A small frown crossed Luz’s face.

“Yeaaah, it is an awfully complicated situation,” Willow said, nodding her head. Luz jerked her head up, as if she forgot where she was. Boy, she sure was good at getting lost in her own thoughts sometimes!

“Oh, uh, was I that obvious?”

“Clear as crystal,” Willow said with a grin. She gently pushed the book into Luz’s chest. “You’re free to borrow the book if you like. I already taught you the basics: Even after centuries, we don’t know much about the Cherubim, but you might still get something out of reading more.”

Luz gripped the book tightly and gave Willow an uncertain book. “You sure? Sure you’re not gonna need it?”

“Of course!” 

A smile spread onto Luz’s lips. “Thank you. I’ll make sure Eda doesn’t add it to her nest! Maybe. I don’t know, she can be awfully sneaky sometimes.”

* * *

By the time Luz left Willow’s house, the sun was setting over the horizon. Even now, people busily prepared their homes for the incoming invasion and Coven Witches did their best to provide essential services around town. Even in the face of Valeween, Luz felt a gentle warmth at how everyone was united to protect themselves and others. Surely Valeween wouldn’t be so bad if these same people bore out their honest feelings to each other, right?

Oh well. Even if things did go to hell and a handbasket, Luz felt better prepared now, armed with the knowledge of what was to come and the meaning behind everyone’s actions. Sure, the Cherubim combined the threat of a natural disaster with an existential crisis, but surely Luz could keep a handle on it? With her friends and newfound family at her side, Luz knew she could fight off the Cherubim like any other monster. 

For now though, Luz wanted nothing more than rest on her warm, comfy bed. Her legs still ached, and Luz’s mind percolated with all the new information she learned. A loud yawn escaped her lips, and making her way through the plaza, Luz wondered just what the Owl House looked like after all of Eda and Lilith’s fortifications?

As Luz walked through Bonesborough, however, her eyes once again caught a glimpse of mint-green hair. She blinked a couple of times to make sure she was seeing things right, and indeed, that was Amity. 

To Luz’s shock, the green-haired Witch was exiting an armoury. She was dressed in black-and-grey leather armour that wouldn’t look out-of-place in a history museum, and hanging off her hip was a sword and scabbard. Amity looked as though she stepped fresh off a battlefield, ready to command a thousand troops for the glory of the Blight family name. If Amity ordered Luz to charge headfirst into battle, it would take Luz a second to realize her feet were already running. 

And despite the oddness of her attire, Amity carried herself with the same calm poise as ever. Luz couldn’t help but stare at her finely dressed friend, and when Amity turned her head and noticed Luz, the Human jerked as Amity shouted, “Luz! There you are, I was afraid you already went home!”

“Oh! Uh, hey there. Again,” Luz said, unsure why her face felt so hot. She lamely waved a hand. “Y-Yeah, I just finished dropping off my last package at Willow’s place.”

“...I didn’t take her parents for the type to know Eda.” 

“Right!? Willow said the same thing!” Luz slapped her forehead. “It’s like our minds are connected telepathically or something!”

A weak chuckle escaped Amity. “I certainly hope not. No offense, but if I toured around your brain for an afternoon, I’d probably go crazy.”

“Hey!” Luz said in mock offense. She gave Amity a playful shove. “I should say the same thing! If I got stuck in your brain, I’d probably lose my way. I bet it's, like, an endless labyrinth of magical knowledge, chess boards, and other smart stuff!”

“What’s chess?”

“Never mind!”

A short pause followed, and in that silence, the two girls simply relished each other’s presence. It just felt good to be in such company, to know you could joke around with someone who listened and cared about your opinions. When Luz couldn’t take it anymore, she gestured to Amity’s armour and sword.

“So, preparations for Valeween?”

Amity glanced down at her outfit like she forgot she was wearing it. She nodded her head and blushed faintly.

“Uh, pretty much! They’re heirlooms passed down through the Blight family for generations. They served my great-great-great-grandma Larissa Blight well during the Valeween Siege of ‘89.” Amity rubbed her throat, which was covered in a high-collar of red leather. “Cherubims cannot get through this armour while it's enchanted. I brought this stuff by the armoury to have the enchantments reforged.”

“That’s awesome, Amity! I bet you’ll make a great fighter!” Luz nodded to the sword. “I didn’t know you knew how to use a blade.”

“Oh, who hasn’t won a gold trophy for Best Swordsmanship at the Young Adult’s Fencing Championship?” Amity shrugged and rolled her eyes, as if it was no big deal. “But yes, I’ve been training with a blade since I was six. My… Parents insisted I learn.” She let that sentence just hang for a moment. “I started slacking a few months ago, so I gotta sharpen my skills before the big day.”

“...Are you worried?”

The green-haired Witch paused, as if thrown off-kilter by the question. 

Perhaps a few months ago, Amity would have insisted that she was fine, then left a slack-jawed Luz standing there. To act like she was stronger than she was, pretend everything would be okay. 

But the past six months had changed Amity– At least when it came to Luz. With Luz, Amity could be honest. With Luz, Amity could be weak and vulnerable, and not be less for it. Amity didn’t have to prove her worth to her friend, didn’t have to put on a façade of strength to impress her. Around Luz, Amity could be herself, and besides, Luz could see the truth in her eyes.

Slowly, Amity nodded her head.

“...I had a bad Valeween once. A really bad one.” Amity tightened her knuckles and stared at the ground. “Please don’t ask me anything else about it. I... I don’t want to feel that way again. I refuse.”

Luz didn’t say anything at first. She stared at Amity, who looked as fragile as a fallen leaf, and with full confidence in her eyes, she firmly nodded her head.

“Okay.”

And it was all Amity needed. She looked up, and seeing the quiet compassion in the human’s eyes, Amity smiled softly.

“Thank you.” A small sigh escaped the green-haired witch. “I won’t lie though, even with this equipment, I’m not mentally prepared for Valeween.”

“...Why don’t we all train together?” 

Amity blinked. “Huh?” 

“You, me, Gus and Willow!” Luz reached out and grabbed hold of Amity’s hands. A glint of enthusiastic determination filled her eyes.. “If we learn how to fight these Cher-vampire-things, then we shouldn’t have anything to worry about, right?” 

“Cherubims,” Amity said in an off-handed voice. She then looked into Luz’s unflinching optimism and felt her resistance fading. She could never say no to that face. “Th-that does sound… Promising though. It… It cannot hurt, I suppose.”

 **‘Cherubim feed on a blue substance they can extract from Witches after hitting them with a Cherubim Ray. What this substance is is unknown, but a side effect of being hit by a Cherubim Ray is that it will affect the anatomy of a Witch, and force them to reveal their honest feelings towards those around them. This has often led to calamity.’** **  
****-Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 1, Page 4**

* * *

**Fun fact - The drawing of Willow and Luz is the first drawing that I ever did for this story - And I think it's fairly obvious to be honest. How I draw Luz in particular has definitely changed over the last couple of weeks.**

**This was going to be a joint project, but **[Raphael Antonello](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raphael_Antonello/pseuds/Raphael_Antonello)** dropped out of it for various reasons, so this is now a solo operation by me - So that's _fun_. In the interest of giving credit where credit is due though, he did a large chunk of editing on this chapter and on chapter 2**

**This does mean that it's going to be a lot harder for me to do art for this story though - I had a drawing that I wanted to do for this chapter, and that fell apart because now I don't have the time to do all of that and work on this project. This project also won't be done by Halloween - It was never going to be, so I'm just hoping to get to the beginning of Valeween night for Halloween, and then work from there. It's not ideal but I'll do my best.**

**The artist who did the work for the Cherubim here was by a Celrise the Traveling Artist, and they gave themselves a link in the picture (I've had no contact with this person in any way), so be sure to check them out!**

**I hope you all enjoyed, and I'll see you next Chapter - Which will be tomorrow : D**


	3. Lo Siento

**‘It is considered a Witch’s Civic Duty to help prepare for, and help fight against the Cherubim once Valeween is upon the Isles.’** **  
** **-Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 2, Page 13.**

After all the hustle and bustle that Luz was subjected to throughout the day, the calm of night was a welcome respite.

While it was just a short walk from Bonesbrough, the forest that surrounded the Owl House was far away enough that the noise that filled the city couldn’t reach it. This was especially true as Luz walked through the forest, guided by the glow of her light spell: deep in the heart of the forest, not a single sound could be heard, not the twitter of insects nor the croaking of frogs. Not even the wind reached this far into the black wood, and with the stillness of the leaves, Luz felt as if she descended into a dark cave, deep into the belly of the earth.

The only real noise Luz heard was the sound of her own footsteps, which echoed off the trees. And yet, there was something comforting about that: After being surrounded by paranoid Witches and Demons, Luz felt safer on her own right now. In the morning, the eerie calm of the forest had freaked her out. Now, it was a welcome respite.

Really, the only thing that really bothered Luz now was the faint, yet persistent weight of feeling there were eyes on her back. Try as she might, Luz felt as though the trees were watching her, and Amity’s words didn’t make Luz feel any better.

_ “It’s how we know they’re watching.” _

‘ _ She must have meant the Cherubim _ ,’ Luz thought. She looked around the forest, wondering if anywhere was safe from the creatures’ gaze. ‘ _ I wonder what they’re watching for? Are they hunting for future targets, or are they just weirdos _ ?’

Out of morbid curiosity, Luz stopped by a low hanging branch and plucked a leaf from the branch. It still had the same leafy texture, the same odour of chlorophyll and sap. If Luz looked close enough, she could even see the forest through the leaf, which was thinner than paper. When Luz tried to crinkle the leaf in her hand, however, something felt wrong.

It was impossible to do so. The leaf felt like solid stone, as stiff and unmoving as the earth beneath her feet. It was as if the leaves were more resilient through whatever magic the Cherubim cast on them.

Maybe they were. 

“ _ Spooky _ ,” Luz muttered to herself. 

She carried on down the path, letting the leaf fall from her hand. It began to fall down to the ground just like any other normal leaf. Only with Luz's back turned, she didn't notice the single, glowing eye that spouted from it. 

And as soon as it hit the ground, the leaf dissolved in it's entirety. 

Once the Owl House entered into view, Luz came to a stop. Evidently, Eda, Lilith, King and Hooty had worked throughout the day – A series of spikes were dug into the ground to make life painfully short and pointy for flying invaders and a series of iron bars were installed around the windows. A few torches were already lit, ice glyphs were planted along the ceiling, and an honest-to-Titan catapult rested atop the castle turret that jutted out of the house. 

How in the hell  _ that _ had gotten up there was anyone's guess.

It must have been an all day affair, for neither Eda nor Lilith could use their Magic anymore. 

“ _ Hooty Hoot! _ Luz is back!” Hooty announced as the Human approached the building. 

“Hey, Hooty.” Luz greeted the House Demon as she entered the building. As soon as she did, she nearly stepped on King, who was curled up by the foot of the door. As soon as he saw Luz, King rose to his feet and climbed to Luz’s shoulder.

“It’s good you’re finally back!” Hooty said, giving his fellow demon a sly grin. “King was getting worried~”

“Slanderous lies!” King immediately lied, slamming the door shut. “The king of demons worries for no one!” 

Luz just smirked and scratched underneath King’s chin. “Daw, I missed you too, boo-boo buddy!”

The tiny demon grumbled in protest, but he didn’t resist Luz’s gentle scratches either. He made himself at home on her shoulder. 

Eda looked from behind the kitchen counter, where she was preparing dinner. Or rather, she stirred the kitchen kettle with a huge spoon, and Luz could only hope the Owl Lady was making dinner and not some foul potion. “There you are, kid. I was wondering what took you so long.” 

“I stopped by Willows’ last.” Luz said. She gave the Owl Lady a suspicious look. “She was the last house I delivered to. I never suspected you knew her dads…” 

If Eda noticed the suspicion in Luz’s voice, the Witch didn’t show signs of it. No wonder she was so good at Hexes Hold’em; No one could beat this Witch’s poker face. Eda simply shrugged.

“Pretty much everyone on the Isles knows me at this point, kid. I wouldn’t be surprised if I was legendary in whole other dimensions, what with all my portal hopping. That’s the life of a truly great witch for you!”

“For perfectly legitimate reasons, I’m sure,” Lilith said, rolling her eyes. The other Witch sat in the corner of the living room, reading an ancient tome. She wore her reading glasses, which made Lilith look more like a stuffy librarian than a former Coven leader. 

“Guess that says something about the Emperors Coven then, doesn’t it?” Eda said with a smirk. She gave Lilith a smug look, pausing in the middle of stirring to lean over the bubbling cauldron. “A whole island that knows who I am, where I live, and how to get hold of me, and you still couldn’t catch me.” 

“Not for a lack of knowledge, I assure you. I merely held back, you know; Didn’t want to upset your fragile constitution. What with the curse and all.”

Months had passed since Lilith moved into the Owl House, and tension still existed between the two sisters. While things had gotten better, Eda and Lilith still bickered back and forth, sometimes over really pointless things. It was hard to argue that Eda didn’t have good reason to be suspicious, and at times uncharitable towards Lilith, but it certainly didn’t improve the relationship either.

The situation was odd, and much like everything these days, complicated. Luz didn’t entirely know what to do, but like her mentor, Luz didn’t fully trust Lilith either. Even someone as forgiving as Luz could only tolerate being used as a meat shield so much, and Lilith used a lifetime of such experiences in one afternoon. 

“Anyway, I’m gonna hazard a guess here,” Eda said, pointing a finger at Luz. The Owl Lady returned to stirring whatever she had cooking in the black pot. “You’re still interested in Valeween, right?” 

“Actually, Willow explained it to me. Briefly.” Luz pulled out the children’s book her friend lent her and held it out. Eda squinted hard before a look of recognition flickered across her eyes. She gave a short shrug.

“Oh. Well, that saves me a job then.” 

“Once again, Eda has escaped explaining the facts of life to her student!” King joked. Eda just growled and bopped the demon over the head with the sticky stirring spoon one single time. “Weh!  _ You dare?!” _

While King grunted and cursed Eda for her impudence, the Owl Lady raised an eyebrow at Luz. 

“In that case, got any other questions? There’s only so much known about those wretched creatures, but I’ll fill you in however I can.” Eda gave King a glare. “I might as well try to teach you, after all.”

“Kind of?” Luz raised an eyebrow. “It’s more that...It’s just weird to me. Everyone seems so freaked out about people around them knowing what they think of them. And everyone in town is working together to make sure that it happens to as few people as possible.” 

“Have they all begun setting up the barricades?” Lilith asked, sitting up straighter from her chair. When Luz nodded, Lilith glanced out the window. “I see. I should travel into the town tomorrow, offer my assistance as a former member of the Emperor’s Coven.” 

“Won’t the Emperor’s Coven handle things themselves?” Luz asked. 

Lilith shook her head. “The Coven doesn’t stay in the city during Valeween. They teach some locals how to protect themselves, but then they have to leave and return to the Emperor’s Keep. It’s to ensure there’s no risk of sensitive information being leaked if a member is affected by a Truth Beam.” 

That made Luz feel a small surge of anger - Weren’t the Coven supposed to be in charge of protecting people? Obviously they didn’t do that in practice, they just enforced the will of the Emperor and harassed anyone who didn’t ‘fit in’ to society, but she had  _ at least _ thought if a real danger presented itself, the Coven would be there. 

Evidently not though. 

“How benevolent.” Eda muttered. “The best Witches that the Emperor can find, he drags into his personal army as his attack dogs, and the  _ one time  _ they might actually do some good, he has them all hide behind a bunch of nice, safe, tall walls.” Luz couldn’t help but agree with her mentor. 

The former leader of the Coven said nothing in defence of it. 

“I may be able to help construct some of the fortifications we were taught for this time.” Lilith mused, before she turned to the teenager in the room. “Luz, did you happen to see if the Construction Coven were taking on volunteer assistance?” 

“Er, I think so.” Luz nodded. “There were a bunch of Abomination and Beast Keeping Covens helping them out. Oh, and Plant Covens too.” 

“Perfect.” Lilith nodded her head, and got up onto her feet. “Thank you.” She then left the room, presumably to make preparations for tomorrow. She had told Luz that she wanted to join the Emperor's Coven to help make the Boiling Isles a better place, back when she had infiltrated the Emperor’s Keep. It had been hard to take that seriously at the time, but Luz did wonder if she was serious about it. 

“That’s what I mean.” Luz said, gesturing after Lilith left the room. “Everyone was working together to make it harder for these Cherubim… Things to do their… Thing.” 

Eda raised her eyebrow. “Yeah, it’s uh, really weird that people help each other out.” 

“No, not that, I mean - Doesn’t it seem like it’s a contradiction? People who don’t even like each other working together and putting in a ton of effort into fighting against these Cherubim, when they could get rid of most of the power of the Cherubim by just being honest with each other?” 

Granted, there was a bit of hypocrisy in her own confusion, and Luz was aware of it. She had lied through omission about even being on the Boiling Isles to her mother. She was aware of how it was difficult to be honest sometimes. 

The difference was that that particular lie wasn’t going to be responsible for grief and carnage caused during a  _ literal invasion.  _

“Aside from the fact that those things are dangerous enough as is, you say that like it’s easy, kid.” Eda shrugged, her voice more solemn. “Not everyone wears everything on their sleeve the way you do. Not everyone can.” 

For just a second, Eda stopped making dinner and sighed. 

“Pretty much everyone on the Isles knows someone who’s gotten hit by Cherubim Rays before and had it ruin their lives. You can’t force people to be honest like that. If it’s not on their terms, it’s… It’s way more likely to do more harm that it does good. And it has done. Did Willow tell you about the Pyros of Valeween?” 

Luz blinked. “Er, no?” 

In response, Eda nodded at the book Luz held, and went back to making food. Luz took a seat on the couch, and opened up the book from the beginning. 

The first section was dedicated to things that she had already been told about the Cherubim by Willow, what they looked like, what it was that they did, and some of their capabilities. What surprised Luz was the fact that now that she was reading, she realized just how small these things were - They were fairly small creatures, roughly the size of a bird. It was the sheer number of them that made them such a threat. 

Flipping through the book, she was able to learn a few more details about them - One thing she found particularly interesting was the fact that once affected by their Truth Beams, an affected person’s eyes would glow a light blueish colour whenever they were speaking their innermost personal thoughts and feelings. Interestingly, if a person wasn’t trying to hide those thoughts, their eyes wouldn’t glow. So it was almost like an indicator of when someone was saying something they wouldn’t otherwise say.

It also came with something of a guide of how to interact with individuals affected by a Cherubim Ray - In this case, it just suggested getting away from them, because it was the decent thing to do, and it would lead to less conflict later down the line.

Luz couldn’t disagree with that in the slightest. It made sense to her. If there was nothing else you could do, then at the very least doing what you could to not take advantage and listen to their innermost thoughts seemed like the most decent thing to do. . 

Historical events surrounding the Cherubim arrival was an interesting section as well. They always seemed to be followed by a social upheaval, local drama, political unrest, and many times, outright danger. 

The Pyros of Valeween in particular referred to at least a dozen separate events in which during a Valeween invasion, powerful Witches who held nothing but contempt for one another were forced to share those opinions, and engaged in a huge Magic battle - Just like Eda alluded could happen between her and Lilith. The results were often devastating. At least two villages had been outright burned to the ground. 

Which in turn made the job of the Cherubim to attack other residents and feed on them even easier. If applied to a city the size of Bonesbrough… Luz shuddered at the idea.

All that being said, the book at the very least was fair - It acknowledged that there were a few good things that had come of the arrival of the Cherubim from time to time. It mentioned people like Willow’s parents, and a few eccentric mayors who appreciated the absolute ruthless honesty that came from their subjects. People who were unaware that they were hurting the people around them would often receive the biggest wake-up call of their lives, and many were inspired to change. It wasn’t like it was a complete gloom-fest. 

Weighed up against the possible negative outcomes though… It was hard to argue that the Cherubim were far more of a threat than they were a blessing in disguise. 

Granted though - The fact they drank…. Blue goo… Stuff, from people pretty much always had them put into that camp anyway. But still…

“Alright!” Eda loudly announced, clanging two pans together to get the attention of everyone in the Owl House, and snapping Luz right from her reading, “Food is ready and is  _ mostly _ not moving, come get it!” 

The Human had only had the freely given soup for breakfast she had received for the entire day - She was starved. She closed the book and quickly made her way to the kitchen. The rest of the book, she could read later.

* * *

_ Why did it have to be this year? _

Of all the events and celebrations and whatever else that characterized the Boiling Isles, from the painbows, to Boiling Rain, to Grom, to whatever socialite hell her parents put her through whenever it suited them, Valeween was the worst of it. 

The absolute worst.

On a conceptual level, on a material level, and on both a historical and personal level, Amity held nothing but contempt for the event - She hated it. In every way it was possible to hate it. The Cherubim, their stupid rays, what they did to people, what they made them say. She hated all of it. 

Just the idea of it alone was enough to scare her. 

What it had done to her in the past… That hurt her. 

Left her without the ability to even delude herself anymore. 

All of this she thought about as she looked at the wall which just a few months ago, had had a poster of Lilith and the Emperor's coven hung up on it. She had taken it down after learning the part Lilith had played in cursing Eda, and putting Luz in danger by extension. Even if she had abandoned the Coven, that didn’t change a thing for Amity. Even if she lived at the Owl House now, that didn’t change a thing. 

Luz might have forgiven her - She might not have. Amity didn’t know, she hadn’t thought to ask for a while now. But whatever the case was, that didn’t mean she had to. 

Instead, now that part of the wall was covered by a corkboard, with at least two dozen pictures that were pinned to it, all of which were of her and her friends. Luz, Willow, and Gus. A few were with previous Detention Track students Luz had befriended, Viney, Jerbo, and Barchus, who Amity could also consider friends, but not as close as the others. And against her better judgement, there were even a few with the twins in them. All from various days that the group of them had been able to spend together over the last six months. 

From Grom, to school trips, to just messing around and having fun days out, away from all the adults and any other social expectations. No judgement. No one to disappoint. 

Just one another, and whatever they wanted to do. 

Amity cherished those moments. More than she had ever cherished any other moments in her entire life. They meant the world to her. Everything to her. For the first time in her life, she felt like she was accepted - Not because she was a Blight, like her previous group had.

But because she was Amity. 

Even when they knew about her and her past. What she had done, and the sort of person she was. Even Willow had found it in her heart to forgive her. 

And all that was owed to Luz. 

Because Luz had told her she could change. Had encouraged her to change. And had made Amity  _ want  _ to change. 

Luz the Human, who had come into her life, and changed it for the better. Had made her change. Had brightened up the world around her. Like starlight. 

_ Her starlight.  _

Amity blushed. If Luz ever heard that little nickname she had begun to use for her, she might just die of embarrassment. 

The Witch stood up, and approached the corkboard. The picture at the very centre was one of her and Luz, and had been taken during Grom.. Whenever she looked at it, she remembered that night. She remembered how much fun she had been able to have after the horror of Grom had been dealt with. How incredible that night had been. How close she had gotten to be to Luz. 

How in spite of being Human, she had made that night magical, ant not through one of her Glyphs. 

She unclipped the picture from the corkboard, and held it up to her eyes. A smile appeared, and she held the picture gently to her chest. 

“...You don’t know how important you are to me.” She said to herself, softly. Gently. 

It always felt a bit better to… At least say it out loud. Even though no one was around. It was like a valve that she could use to let out the feelings the Human spurred in her, that had only gotten more intense with time. Months she had felt like this, and months had only made those feelings more and more prominent in the young Witch. 

Frankly she found it impossible to understand how anyone wouldn’t be in love with Luz. How many different layers of blind did someone have to be? 

...And that just brought her back to what was happening now. What was going to happen now. Amity sighed, and reattached the picture to the board. “Why this year…” She asked herself as she did so. 

Chance. That was really all it was. 

If she wasn’t careful… Everything was going to be ruined by sheer chance.

Oh, Titans Mercy, how she _hated_ that thought. 

She wandered over to the window, and looked out over the city of Bonesbrough, and at the sky above it. In just a couple of days, that sky would open, and the Cherubim would arrive. And if she got herself hit by one of their rays… This little secret she had tried so hard to keep to herself would be out. 

A truly terrifying prospect. Amity had gotten better at keeping her emotional state in check whenever she was around Luz, but that didn’t mean she didn’t feel it. Whenever Luz was near, her heart would beat faster, and her stomach would feel fuzzy, and all she could think about was how absolutely perfect and amazing Luz was. How incredible she was, and how lucky she was that Luz was her friend. She couldn’t ask for more.

...But she wanted more. Wished for more. 

Yet didn’t have the guts to ask. To risk that friendship that they did have…

...To risk the idea in her head that maybe, somehow, Luz might... 

...If the Cherubim hit her with one of their rays… Well, it wouldn’t matter the reasons she didn’t say anything. Luz would know everything. 

Amity hadn’t even gotten to enjoy a single year of this without it now running the risk of collapsing in front of her. 

She could ask Luz to stay away, but she knew Luz. 

Luz wouldn’t want to. She’d want to make sure everyone was okay, and she’d put herself through whatever danger she needed to to do it. This was the same person that had taken on  _ the freaking Emperor  _ to save her mentor. 

Again - Luz was an absolutely  _ amazing person. _ How she had ever thought otherwise was a mystery to her now. 

Somehow she didn’t think that anything would keep Luz away from her friends during Valeween. Even if it made less sense, she would want to be there to help them. Because that was how she was. And Amity loved that part of her as much as any other part of her. 

...She didn’t want Luz to learn about how she felt from anyone other than her. On her terms. 

Because Luz deserved that. She deserved to hear it from someone who wasn’t being forced to admit to anything. She deserved to hear exactly how she had made Amity’s life better in the way only Amity could tell her. With a confession from the heart, not under the influence of some... Leeching parasite that came from another dimension in the sky. 

...But the fear of rejection, that deep, ugly terror that existed deep in Amity’s soul, that was still there. And she hated that she was going to be forced to pick between them. 

Between being forced to admit to all of this by some stupid insect thing, telling Luz before she had the courage to, or hiding away like a coward. 

.... Oh, who was she kidding. 

She wouldn’t ever really have the courage. Not unless something really forced her hand. Luz meant… So much to her, that she wasn’t sure she would ever be able to find it in her to summon the bravery to risk all of that. 

Yet that was the choice she had to make. Or it would be made for her. 

And she hated having her life decided for her too. 

...So which did she hate less? 

* * *

When Luz landed in her bed, and closed her eyes, she had expected to be out cold within seconds. She had spent the whole day running around, and her eyelids were heavy before she had even said goodnight to Eda and Lilith. It had been such a busy day for her. 

Yet the second she entered her room, suddenly she felt wide awake. 

Though she tried to sleep anyway - She laid on her bed, and closed her eyes, but after about thirty minutes of tossing and turning and flailing her limbs around for no particular reason, and feeling too warm under the covers, and too cold over them, she realized this wasn’t going to happen. 

Now she was here, she was reminded of her discovery from this morning. 

The six months that she had been on the Isles. 

Not ‘Stuck’ on the Isles. Not ‘Stranded’. Not ‘Lost’. 

Just here, on the Isles. 

She got up, and made her way to the windowsill, and opened it up. From her notebook, she flipped to a Light Glyph, tapped it, and hovered the light above her head. The light was comforting. 

...When  _ had  _ she stopped thinking of herself as trapped on the Isles? 

If she were being honest - It wouldn’t have been all that long. Maybe a month or two at the most, because the truth was, she never thought of herself as being trapped on the Isles. Outside the initial culture shock, Luz hadn’t ever once seen the Isles as anything other than a place where she finally felt like she belonged. A world she cared about. A world where she fit in. Where she had friends. Where she felt like if she disappeared, people would actually notice. 

It was something of a moot point - It had been months since the portal to the Human Realm had been destroyed, and there had been literally no progress whatsoever on finding a way back. Eda and Lilith had found no ways back there, and Luz… 

Luz hadn’t even looked for a long, long time. A part of her had almost just... 

...Accepted the fact that she wouldn’t see Earth again.

Her phone, she noticed, was still in the windowsill from this morning. A thought occurred to her, and made her hesitant to pick it up again. But she knew she couldn’t ignore this either. If for no other reason than her own curiosity. 

She picked up the phone, and opened up the ‘Video Captures’ folder. When was the last time she had made a video diary entry? 

Four months ago. And even then, it had only been a brief entry. Only about two minutes long. 

...So that was when she stopped considering herself lost. A pang of shame hit her. 

There were so many reasons that she kept a video diary. It was quicker than writing one. It let her get thoughts out quickly. It was a small way to remember how life was back on Earth… 

...But the main reason she had started it was because it was a way she felt connected to her mother. 

For some reason, Luz decided to play one of the earliest entries. She watched it in silence. 

A smiling Luz lit up the screen. 

_ ‘¡Hola mami! So, check this out!’ _ The recording of Luz showed off a Plant Glyph on a piece of paper, and she placed it in front of the camera. She tapped it, and from it sprouted a Chupacabra Rose, which almost immediately attacked the recording version of Luz, resulting in a scream. 

After about fifteen seconds, she came back onto the view of the camera. _ ‘Okay so… That could have gone better - But I’m getting better at making the plants that I want to appear. Willow says I’ve got a blue thumb. I… I think that was a compliment. It’s hard to tell here sometimes.’ _

It was a compliment, Luz had since learned. 

_ ‘...No updates on a way back home.’ _ The recording reported.  _ ‘Eda says it’s going to take a while, if it’s even possible, and Lilith doesn’t know about any other ways back either… I might not be back before the Summer ends - But I’m not gonna give up! I’m gonna find a way back home, I promise!’  _ And then the entry ended. 

Luz scrolled up through a few entries, then randomly hit one to play. 

_ ‘Amity helped me learn how to make an Abomination today!... I - I’d show you but that gets… Really messy, and Eda’s still mad at me about the whole ‘Paint-Heart Incident’. So… Not gonna risk that.’ _ Luz awkwardly smiled at the memory. 

She truly hadn’t meant to coat the house in paint, nevermind paint that was apparently  _ alive  _ \- How was she supposed to know? 

_ ‘I wanna do something to thank Amity. I’ve talked about how difficult that stuff was for me to get the hang of. Amity didn’t need to spend so much time helping me out with that stuff. But I dunno what I could even do. All I’ve got to offer is teaching her how to use Glyphs… Would she even be interested in that?’  _

The next entry was only a few seconds long. When Luz clicked it, she saw recording-Luz with dirt and a small mark where fire had singed her hair slightly. 

_ ‘So, er… Amity is not great with Glyphs.’  _ And that was it. Luz laughed - It was almost comedic. Amity had appreciated the gesture, but decided to stick to her way of casting Magic. Luz readily agreed with that choice.

Next randomly selected entry. 

_ ‘Remember how I said we got assigned partner projects a little while ago, and we didn’t get to pick our partners, and Boscha and Willow got paired up together? Well, Willow says that Boscha hasn’t been messing with her lately. I dunno what happened, but she said Boscha wasn’t giving her a hard time - Not like she used to, but I guess more attitude? Apparently she’s stopped even that now. I don’t know what to make of it. I wish I knew what was going on there. Maybe I could help Willow out. Amity says I should leave it alone unless Willow asks me for help, and Willow says she can handle it. Maybe they’re right, but I just… Really hate not being able to do anything.’ _

Finally, she scrolled up to the top entry, and hit play. 

‘So,  _ I have my own actual room now!’  _ The recording showed a more bare-boned version of her room, before she had had the chance to decorate it.  _ ‘Eda’s been keeping it a secret for a while since she wanted it to be a surprise - But since I’m gonna be here a while, Eda thought that I should move out of the closet I was staying in… Wow that er, sounds a lot worse when I say it out loud.’  _

And that was it. The last entry that she had made. 

...She had stopped even addressing the entries to her mother not even  _ halfway through  _ the backlog. Like she had forgotten what the point of the diary was. Like she had forgotten why she had started it.

Right as she got her own room. 

In her defence, a lot of stuff happened after she moved into her current room - Tests and deadlines became more and more common at Hexside, and the various misadventures that she had found herself in with her and her friends, learning more and more Magic, taking the time to teach Eda what few Glyphs she knew and managed to figure out - She had gotten so busy, it became hard to keep track of everything. Her diary just… Fell by the wayside. Slipped her mind. 

...Forgotten about. 

Some days she didn’t even think about Earth at all. Or her mother… 

Looking back out of the window, Luz honestly struggled to imagine what the environment of her home dimension even looked like. And yet, she didn’t miss it. Even with the trees and plants this horrible shade of coal black, this place felt like a home to her more than Earth ever had. Beasts and monsters and weird truth-monsters aside included. 

The Boiling Isles  _ was _ her home now. How couldn’t it be? 

If a portal opened up right now, and could take her home… Why would she take it? What was waiting for her back home? 

She was the weird kid. The person no one wanted to be around. She didn’t have friends back there. There was no Magic there. She couldn’t follow her dream there. All of those things, she had here. She wanted to be here. Why go back? 

What did Earth have that the Boiling Isles didn’t? 

... _ Her mother.  _

That was all. 

Luz hung her head. That was the only reason this gave her such grief. 

The only reason. 

In truth… She didn’t care that she had been away from her world for as long as she had been. Not for any in depth reason. Not really. There was nothing there that she wasn’t willing to leave behind for this place. Her mother was the only thing she even really thought about back home. 

...And still… If that portal was there, and could take her home… She wouldn’t take it. 

Not unless she knew she could come back. 

Looking at her phone for just a moment, Luz considered for just a brief moment. Then, she swiped her screen to the camera icon, and pressed record. 

“...Hi, Mami.” She said, noticing that her own voice was wracked with guilt. “It’s… I’m sorry I haven’t made an entry in a while. A lot of… Stuff came up. And I kind of forgot…” What was she even supposed to say? If she were being honest, Luz wasn’t sure. In her other entries, she just talked about whatever was happening to her at the time. 

Maybe she should just do that. 

“...There’s this uh… Thing, that’s going on right now on the Isles. It’s called Valeween... I don’t know how to describe it to you. I only learned about it just today to be honest. I don’t know everything about it… It’s got a lot of people freaked out though. For a lot of different reasons.”

Was there even any more she could say? 

“My friend Amity, she’s… She’s not too thrilled about it. I wanna help her out. All I can think to do is help practice Magic and let her know I’m there, but… She said she had a really bad Valeween once. I don’t… I don’t think I can help with that. I hate feeling this useless. She needs my help and I can’t do anything…” 

...

“...Is that how you feel back home?” 

Any desire to continue this entry was suddenly shot dead. 

“...Lo siento, Mami.” Luz whispered, before she stopped the recording. 

**‘While Cherubim are only small, in large numbers, they are incredibly difficult to deal with. As such, no one individual has proven capable of keeping a large number of them at bay. Safety in numbers appears to be the only viable strategy against them.’** **  
** **\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 2, Page 18**

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah this was supposed to go up yesterday but I fell asleep - Sorry about that. 
> 
> We've got a lot of moving parts to this story going now, and I'm interested to see what the reception to them all is going to be, or if anyone can figure out a couple of the other directions this story will be going in : 3
> 
> I actually got both of these drawings done today, over the course of about three hours - Which is pretty fast for me. So that was fun : D 
> 
> Hope ya'll enjoyed, and next chapter will be coming out either tomorrow or the day after - It really will depend on how much work I get done once this is up ^_^


	4. Selfish

‘ **‘When a Witch is affected by a Cherubim Ray, there will be no signs of the Witch being affected until they begin to talk - If the affected Witch is revealing something they wish to hide, their eyes will glow a bright blue colour. Why this is the case isn’t known.’** **  
** **\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 3, Page 24**

“So you guys just... Have an entire holiday where you try to freak each other out?” Willow questioned, her head tilting. 

“That’s right!” 

“And you do this by dressing up in costumes?” 

“Yep!”

“And if you’re scarier, you get more free candy?” Gus asked as he wrote down all the new information, a plan for some kind of Human Appreciation Society lecture already formulating in his mind. 

“That’s the idea.” Luz nodded. “Doesn’t always work out that way though. Sometimes cuter costumes get more.” 

“...Have you used the otter costume?” Amity asked, eyebrow raised. “For some reason I feel like you’d use whatever chance you got to wear that thing in public.” 

“I have used the otter costume.” Luz smirked back. “I got so much candy, you have no idea.”

“I see...” Gus nodded as he wrote along. “And, what’s the purpose of all of this Tricky Treating?” 

“Trick or Treating.” Luz corrected, before her eyebrow raised. “Wait, what do you mean?” 

“What ritual does it all contribute to? As in, why do you do it in the first place?” 

“There... Isn’t really a reason for it.” She answered. “I mean, it used to be to scare off what people thought were spirits like, two hundred years ago, but now we just do it for fun.” 

Holidays between the Boiling Isles and Earth were yet another cultural difference, Luz had discovered. Where celebrations on Earth tended to come from tradition or to celebrate important historical events, the holidays on the Isles came out of necessity - A ritual, a threat, or some kind of rare event that came regardless of the will of the residents of the Isles. 

Earth tended to focus on celebration and just having a good time, whereas the Boiling Isles tended to be focused on ritual and necessity. Even calling them celebrations was a bit of a stretch - Any celebrations seemed to come after the fact, when the danger of the situation ended. The best example Luz could think of to highlight this was still Grom - Grom would come around annually regardless of if people liked it or not, and the celebrations surrounding it were based on the almost ritualistic, traditional defeat of the monster. 

Her answer made the three Witches she was explaining the concept to all quirk their expressions. Their own conceptualization of these sorts of events seemed almost at odds with how Humans celebrated. Birthdays seemed to be closest to a celebration solely for fun on the Isles. 

_ And even then.  _

“I guess I just don’t see what would be fun about trying to scare everyone you run into.” Willow said. Not that she was above the occasional practical joke - Their Moonlight Conjuring came to mind - but the idea of an entire celebration surrounding the idea of trying to spook and prank people didn’t make any sense to her. 

For her part, Amity just shrugged. “Sounds like something Edric and Emira would spend weeks planning for.” 

“Oh my God, they would love it so much.” Luz said quickly and nodded, just imagining what the Blight Twins would get up to if they ever got the chance. 

Earth would never know what had hit it. 

The break had been prompted by Gus asking Luz clarifying questions about the Human holiday that she had mentioned to him the day before. Luz had begun to explain the concept behind Halloween, and how it was celebrated back on Earth. Willow and Amity also took an interest, and the four of them ended up taking a break from what had thus far been another full day of training and preparation for the invasion that was to come. 

It was a well needed break - They had decided to train just on the outskirts of the town, in a clearing that had been made specially for people to practice their Magical abilities - An exception to the rules of the Emperors Coven, where people could use their Magic more or less freely, even when it wasn’t an event like Valeween. While they were the first ones there, they weren’t the only ones who had thought to train over the last couple of days, and several other groups had arrived since then, looking to refine their magical abilities in preparation for the invasion of the Cherubim. 

Skill could only be improved with practice - Like athletic ability, or the ability to write or draw. So that was what the four of them did - Practice, practice, and practice. 

For two entire days. 

But overworking it would have done them no good either. If someone lifted weights without taking the time to rest, all they would get were torn, ruined muscles, and that didn’t do them any good either - Especially not when they were going to need them come tomorrow. 

So Luz’s explanation of Human Holidays was a welcome relief to the Witches. 

“Speaking of the twins, actually,” Luz said, pausing for a moment. “Where are they? I don’t see them anywhere around the clearing… Or at all for the last few days. Aren’t they going to train?” 

“They usually have their own plans around Valeween.” Amity answered simply. “They don’t tell me, and I don’t ask.” 

“Fair enough.” Luz shrugged. “And talking about plans...I was wondering.” She glanced around the clearing, looking at all the various Witches who had arrived since, and were refining their Magical skills for the invasion. “People seem to all be working together to make sure that the Cherubim are held back and don’t affect too many people - But why doesn’t everyone just… I dunno, hide in their basements until they leave or something?” 

“It’s been tried. It’s never seemed to work.” Willow put, simply. “Every time we’ve tried, the Cherubim have always been to find their way into the basements.” 

“Okay… So why doesn’t everyone just stay on their own? Spread out across the island or something?” 

“Safety in numbers.” Gus answered. “Your idea works if you don’t want people to reveal their secrets, but no one person can hold off against so many cherubim, and we don’t know what happens if a Cherubim takes… All the blue… Stuff, from a person. Some people have ended up in the Healers offices though, so we kind of assume they just die.” 

Luz shivered, and sighed. That had to be the fifteenth suggestion that she had made for avoiding the Cherubim which had been shot down over the last two days. Each one had been met with an instant explanation as to why it wasn’t viable. “There… Really is no way around those things, is there?” 

“No…” Amity shook her head, a sigh escaping her as she did. “It seems that no matter what we do, we’re between a rock and a hard place.” 

Another sigh - Luz had found herself thinking of whatever ways she could to try to help Amity and everyone else avoid having to deal with the Cherubim, and this entire Valeween event. But it sounded like just about every idea that she could possibly come up with had already been tried by the residents of the Isles over the centuries. 

That had been the subject of the last two days worth of free time, between training and helping Eda and King secure the Owl House more. Thinking up ways and tricks and ideas to help her friend and the rest of the town just ride out the entire invasion. But so far, she had only come up empty. 

It was frustrating, not being able to offer any new ideas or insights. Luz had watched Amity as she trained, both with her heirloom sword and with her Magic, and she was clearly putting in all the effort that she could. It was clearly reflective of the fear she had around this particular event. 

But she also seemed… Well, better. 

Certainly a lot better than she had been just a couple of days ago. It was like she had a better sense of focus, and had gotten hold of herself better. The anxiety and apprehension, they were still there, like they were present in everyone. But they had been far more noticeable in Amity just forty-eight hours ago. And now, she was almost back to normal in that regard. 

Maybe the worst of it had just been the shock of realizing that Valeween was upon her? 

It didn’t make Luz want to help her less though. She knew Amity - Just because she didn’t let something show, it didn’t mean it wasn’t still bothering her. 

Gus began to talk about his theories on Human celebration rituals, but if she were being honest, Luz wasn’t paying all that much attention. Her thoughts were on Amity. So instead, while he went on, she shuffled her way towards the Witch. 

“Hey, are you okay?” She asked, once she had scooted next to her friend. “We’ve been training like, constantly these last couple days, I didn’t get a chance to ask. You were really shaken up the other day.” 

Amity turned her slightly head to look at Luz, before she turned it back in Gus’s direction. “I’m… I’m alright, thank you. I think I’ve gotten over the worst of it.” 

“I’m glad.” Luz nodded, before she sighed. “I’ve been trying to figure out if there was a way that we could avoid doing the whole… Valeween thing. Hiding, some kind of potion that resists the Cherubim Rays, enchantments - Just something. I’ve not had any luck I’m afraid. Your armour seems to be as good as it gets.” 

“Just about everything has been tried over the centuries.” Amity nodded. “But it doesn’t look like there’s any real getting out of this. We have to fight the Cherubim, like it or not.” 

“...Sorry.” 

“Wait, what for?” 

“For not being able to help find another way.” 

“Wait, were you looking into that stuff for my sake?” Now Amity turned to face Luz outright, her expression clearly showcasing her surprise. 

Luz just scratched at the side of her cheek awkwardly. “I mean.... It seemed to really bother you. I wanted to, I dunno… See if I could help find a way for you to not have to deal with this whole mess.” 

A faint red appeared to accent Amity’s cheeks, and a smile became very prominent very quickly. “...Thank you. I… I appreciate that.” 

It felt good to see a smile on Amity’s lips again, Luz thought to herself. She had missed seeing it. It made her smile back all on her own. 

“Hey, you two!” Gus said out loud. When both the Human and Witch turned to look towards their friends, they were on their feet, already getting their Magic circles ready. “You ready to get back to it? We’ve only got today left to train!” 

Hopping onto her feet, Luz smirked, and got her notebook of pre-drawn Glyphs at the ready. “Right!” 

Because it was the best Track suited to training others against foes like the Cherubim, Gus was in charge of generating ‘Targets’ for the rest of his friends - He would create little Cherubim look-alikes, in all their insect-y glory, and the group would use them as their opponents to practice their Magic on. Dozens would swarm the teenagers at a time, firing off facsimiles of the Cherubim Rays, and they would need to utilize all the various skills that they had to fight them off. 

Amity‘s sword-wielding abilities had quickly become more and more refined and impressive as the days had gone on. Like she had said, she was more rusty than she was inexperienced. She could slash and stab, and the illusions would burst. 

But more would always come as quickly as Gus could make them. 

“Remember - Try to trap them!” Gus called out to his friends. “That way they don’t revive!” 

Revival - That was just another one of the tricks the Cherubim had that Luz had learned. 

Cherubim didn’t die - Not really. Whenever they were killed, they would burst into smoke, and would re-emerge from wherever it was that they came from, and re-join the fray. Like a phoenix, just about three times as dangerous, and a thousand times less cute. 

The only way to really put them out of the fight was to trap them - If they were trapped, they couldn’t revive, meaning they were essentially taken out of the equation altogether. 

A lot of the defences of the town made sense when that was considered - They were designed more to slow down the Cherubim, or keep them from being able to easily re-join the fight. They fought an immortal enemy, the only thing they needed was to buy time until time ran out. The less Cherubim in circulation, the easier that became. 

Luz utilized her Ice Glyphs as much as she could, seeking to trap the illusions in ice to trap them and prevent them from escaping. The illusions flew quickly, and she had to sidestep and dodge a fair amount, but she had gotten much quicker at grabbing and throwing out her Glyphs on the fly. She trapped several, taking them out of commission. 

Talented as she was in Plant Magic, Willow was excellent at sweeping aside a large number of Cherubim with vines she could call upon, making her fantastic for thinning out the ranks of the illusion-Cherubim. While she had no real malice towards the invaders inherently, she was as much motivated by a sense of civic duty as anyone else, and was putting her all into the training. 

But because of how dangerous she was to them, the illusions targeted Willow more and more, swarming her from all directions. And though she was able to hold them off, one Cherubim got past her defences, and blasted her with one of it’s beams. 

Of course, it was harmless to her, but it did signify that she was out of the current trial. 

“Dang it.” Willow cursed. 

“You’re out, Willow!” Gus announced, twirling his finger to create another Magic Circle.

And that meant the Cherubim that hit her was able to mutate into its adult form - Which Gus made less visually distinct , as like his pre-mutation Cherubim, it was an outline and colouration of blue. It was kind of like a cross between a spider and a cat, only more insect-y. 

Judging from the picture Luz had seen in the Valeween for Witchlings book, it looked nothing like an adult Cherubim. She wondered if Gus had seen one himself. Not to mention it had skipped a step, and hadn’t ‘drunk’ any ‘blue goo’ from Willow. 

Still, it did its job well enough - Skittering about on its legs, quick, and very hard to hit with Glyphs. It charged at Luz, like it knew she was the weakest against it in its current form. Once within just a few meters of her, it leaped up at her, aiming for her head. 

Only for it to be pierced and turned into a poof of dusty by Amity’s sword. 

“Phew!” Luz exhaled after she jumped back, side-by-side with Amity. “Thanks for the save!” 

Amity just smiled at her. “You look out for me, and I look out for you, right?” 

And the very next second, an immature Cherubim flew right into her hand, knocking the sword out of her hand and sending it skirting across the ground, away from Amity’s reach. 

The next two blasts of Cherubim Rays knocked them both out just a few seconds later. 

“Aaaaand you’re out!” Declared Gus, twirling his fingers and dismissing his illusions. 

Both girls just sort of stood there for a few seconds before it properly registered what had happened to either of them. Luz opened her mouth to protest, “But - “ 

“You can’t let your guard down during Valeween, you two!” Gus told the pair of them, his arms folded. He was either taking this all extremely seriously, or between the Human Appreciation Society, teaching those Witchlings the other day, and this, he had begun to fancy himself as something of a teacher. 

Either way though, he was right. From what Luz had read, the Cherubim illusions he made were about as aggressive and unpredictable as he had made them. If anything, his illusions were probably understating just how much of a pain the invaders were going to be to deal with. The Human and Witch sighed simultaneously. 

“...So, er, no battlefield banter during the actual Valeween, agreed?” Luz asked, scratching the back of her head. 

“...Agreed.” Amity nodded, walking to retrieve her sword. Luz wandered with her, laughing slightly at the way they had both gotten themselves knocked out of the session. 

_ ‘It has to be today that I do this’, _ Amity repeated to herself in her head for what had to be the eightieth time now.  _ ‘It has to be today.’ _

After they were done with training for today. She’d do it then. 

_ She was going to tell Luz how she felt about her.  _

The last two days had been an internal debate for Amity. Which did she hate more - Being forced to tell Luz how she felt about her before she was really ready to, or being made to tell her while under the influence of some insect monster? Or did she want to hide away like a coward?

Luz wouldn’t judge her for it if she chose that third option - Bless her, she had even been trying to find ways to help her do just that. And she’d be lying if she didn’t find the idea tempting. 

But where was that going to leave her? Abandoning Luz, Gus and Willow so she could hide somewhere because she was afraid? She remembered how well that had worked out for her at Grom, and she wasn’t going to repeat that mistake. If for no other reason than Luz deserving better than that. 

She wouldn’t leave Luz to do this on her own again. She refused to make Luz fight her battles for her again. 

But that put her back into the dichotomy - Did she prefer to chance not getting hit by a Cherubim Ray, or did she want Luz to at least hear it from her? 

It really wasn’t much of a contest at that point. 

And Amity would be honest - She was absolutely  _ Gods forsaken terrified  _ of what Luz was going to respond with. She never had to second guess where she stood when it came to Luz, but this subject, here, now? Of someone like Amity liking someone like Luz? Amity wasn’t sure how Luz would react to it. The fear of rejection was still there. Prominently. 

Everything that had made her life so…. So bright over these last few months… She could very easily be risking losing all of it. Every mistake she had managed to fix, every friendship she had managed to attain, the feeling that made Amity’s day lighten up whenever she was around Luz… She was risking losing it all.

... But at least it would be on her terms. 

_ It had to be today. _ Before the choice was taken away from her. 

Amity knelt down, picked up the sword, inspected it briefly, and stood back up. No scratches or anything like that were present on it, and more importantly, the enchantment seemed to be completely undamaged. She looked up. 

And found Boscha staring back at her. 

She was on top of the staircase that led down into the clearing, so Boscha was able to look down at the green-haired Witch. And given her history, and the position she was in, one might have expected her to sneer at Amity. But that didn’t happen. 

In reality, Boscha looked just as surprised to see Amity there as Amity was to see her old ‘friend’ here. The pair of them just sort of looked at one another for a moment, registering that the other was there. 

“Um, Boscha?” A voice came from behind the red-haired Witch, which, as ot’s originator came forward, revealed itself to be Skara. “What’re you - Oh, Amity! Hey!” 

“Hello, Skara.” Amity nodded. Skara was mostly harmless, Amity had always thought. She was more of a tag-along to Boscha, and only really seemed to engage in cruelty whenever Boscha did. On her own, Amity didn’t have much of a problem with her, other than the fact their ‘friendship’ had been forced onto her by her parents, but that was hardly Skara’s fault. She turned her head back to the other girl, and simply stated, “Boscha.” 

That prompted movement from Boscha. She made her way down the stairs, followed by Skara. Once she was on the same level as the other Witch, then she spoke. “Amity.” Just then, Luz arrived, standing next to Amity. “Human.” 

Immediately, the call over the Crystal Balls sprung into Luz’s mind. “What’re you planning on doing to Willow?” 

“...What?” Boscha’s right and third eyebrows both raised. “What in the Titan’s name are you talking about?” 

“I heard you were staring at her in classes and taking pictures of her - Why’re you doing that?” 

“I have like, literally no clue what you’re on about.” Boscha said, flatly. Her eyebrows “I’ve left you alone, haven’t I? Why would I want to start crap with any of you now?” 

“So it’s just a coincidence you’re here now?” 

“Are you -  _ Are you seriously trying to imply I came here knowing you were all here because I wanted to mess with you?!  _ I don’t know if you noticed, Human, but Valeween is literally tomorrow! I just wanted to get some practice in! I don’t - “

“I believe her.” 

All participants in the conversation turned to see Willow herself standing behind Amity and Luz. How long she had been listening in on that conversation, and how she had managed to do so while being unnoticed was anyone's guess, but her expression was mostly neutral. Her voice had been level, and calm. 

“...Willow.” Boscha nodded, slowly. Her expression was difficult to read. 

“Boscha.” Willow nodded back, though she allowed herself to give the other girl the absolute faintest of smiles. She turned to Luz, “I know Boscha well enough to know she’s not a stalker, Luz. She wouldn’t have any way of knowing we were here anyway.” 

“What about the rumours though?” 

Willow looked at Boscha again. The way the two of them interacted with one another, especially over the last few months, had been odd to say the least. Boscha wasn’t any longer the absolute jerk she had been, but there was still a sense of coldness about her that Luz was half sure she intentionally kept up. Willow seemed to be able to look past it though, somehow. 

She looked back to her friend. “...I don’t think I believe them, either.” 

God knew how, or what she saw. 

A flicker of a smile appeared on Boscha’s lips, though it was impossible to tell if it was from the satisfaction of seeing Luz put down by Willow, or if it was for some other reason. Either way, it irked the Human, but she backed down. 

Amity however, just folded her arms. “Well, I’m still keeping an eye on you.” 

“You’re free to waste your time if you want, I really don’t care.” Bscha said, rolling her two main eyes, but keeping her third fixed on the group. “I’m here to train so I don’t get blasted by a Cherubim. That’s all.” 

“Hey! Weird idea!” Skara piped up. “We could all train together?” 

Everyone turned to look at Skara like she had grown a second head, a tail, and a second torso all at once. 

“What?” She asked, defensively. “It’s not like we’re gonna be fighting each other! We’re all fighting the Cherubim, aren’t we? I’d rather we all work together and not get shot!” 

“Not that I’m super thrilled at the idea,” Gus said, “But she’s got a point. We could end up working with people we don’t really like during the actual invasion. It might not be a bad idea to practice in groups we don’t normally get along with.” 

“I’ve already got my hands full with fighting out how to handle these illusions you make.” Luz muttered. 

“Would your Magic even work on Cherubim?” Boscha questioned, arms folding. “Or what, are you just useful as live bait?” 

“You know what -” 

“Hey!” Everyone turned once again to Willow - Now her expression was that of a glare, aimed directly at the three-eyed girl. Her hands were balled up into fists. Clearly she was angry at the mere suggestion.

But she looked sadder than one would have expected. It was hard for either Luz or Amity to describe exactly how Willow’s expression looked. 

For her part though, Boscha’s own expressions weakened, and her arms unfolded. She didn’t seem to know what to do with herself for a moment, before she bit her lip, and turned on her heel. “...Sorry.” She muttered, and then began to make her way away from everyone else. “Skara, come on.” 

“I thought we were - “ 

“Skara!” 

“Okay, okay! Rude.” Skara looked back at the group, shrugged, and then jogged her way towards Boscha, and the pair of them made their way to the other side of the clearing, as far as it was possible to get from the rest of them. 

There really wasn’t any other word for the interaction than… Odd. It had been odd. Neither Luz nor Amity knew what to make of it, or of Boscha for that matter. Clearly she was acting differently to the way she used to act, but what prompted that, what it was inspired by, or why she had backed down so readily, that was all a giant mystery. 

Hell, Amity had never known Boscha as the type to apologize... For much of anything, really. Obviously something was going on. 

“Just when you think maybe someone’s changed a bit…” Willow sighed, only now relaxing her hands again. She shook her head, and turned around. “Come on. I want to try that again.” 

The three other friends just glanced between one another, but nodded, and followed her back to their training area.

* * *

The next hour was much the same as the rest of the day - Hard training, practice, and testing strategies. Honing various skills and spells. 

In particular, the encounter with Boscha seemed to have had an effect on Willow. She was irritated, and that translated into the strength of her Magic. Easily, she was the one dominating in terms of ‘captures’ or ‘kills’ against the illusion-Cherubim. 

One of the skills that Amity tried to focus on in particular was her ability to wield both her sword, and cast her spells at the same time. On paper, it wasn’t all that difficult, but being accurate with her spells, while also coordinating both her eyes and hands, judging the distances between her hand, the hilt, and the blade of the weapon all at once was far more difficult than it sounded. 

Her skills still rested with her Abominations though - They were the easiest to control. The only thing she had to do was cast a Magic circle, and guide the creature with her commands, and it would handle itself just fine. All the hours she spent mastering them was worth it, it seemed like. 

Still, it wasn’t a perfect series of defences, because more than once, Amity found herself down in the dirt, knocked over by one of the illusions. 

“Amity! Are you alright?!” After the third time this happened, joined by a particularly nasty fall, Luz quickly made her way over to Amity, holding her hands out to help the Witch onto her feet. 

“I’m fine… Ouch.” Amity assured her, accepting the helping hand up. In truth, she felt dizzy - The fall had knocked her on her head, and disorientation swiftly followed. 

“You sure? You seem kind of… Spaced out.” 

“I’m… A bit dizzy. That’s all. I think I just… Need a minute.” 

“Okay, we’re taking a five-minute-break, come with me," Luz told her, helping her to the side of the clearing and into the shade, where they would be able to sit down and stay out of the way for a short while so Amity could get her bearings. 

As they made their way back, they heard, “Sorry!” being called by Gus. Amity didn’t look back at him, but held up a thumbs up so he knew she heard him. 

Luz led her to a spot that was out of the way of other trainers, and let her go once they were there. Amity then took full control of herself again, and slid down the side of the wall and onto the ground. The clearing was still spinning, but already she felt a bit better. 

“Water?” Luz offered. 

“Please.” 

For just a few seconds, Luz left Amity on her own to run back to her back. She returned with a bottle, and handed it to the Witch. She all but inhaled the water for about ten full, uninterrupted seconds - She was far, far more thirsty than she had previously realized. A gasp escaped her as she took the bottle away from her lips, and placed it on the ground beside her. 

“T...Thank you.”

“Feel any better?” 

“Yes, actually.” She nodded. “Still dizzy, but I think the water helped.” 

“You can drink that entire thing if you need.” 

“What about you?” 

The Human just smirked, and retrieved her notepad and pen. She drew out a Glyph, pulled the paper from the pad, and tapped it to activate its effects. Immediately, the paper expanded and folded into itself, not too unlike how her Light Spell would do so, but instead of becoming a solid sphere of light, it began to turn transparent, and then began to hue a bluish colour. 

_ Water.  _

“You… You learned a new Glyph?” Amity watched this entire thing occur, mesmerized by Luz’s unique way of casting Magic as always. 

“Surprise!” Luz grinned, opening her hands wide, and showing that the water would follow her hands, and congeal whenever they came back closer together. “Something good came out of getting stuck in the house for three days in a thunderstorm!” 

“How many is that now?” 

“Thirteen!“ 

“Why didn’t you say anything until now?” 

“Was kinda hoping to surprise everyone, but it’s er, been like… Really busy these last few days.” Luz slumped down the wall next to Amity, still twisting and turning her hands and wrists to see which way the water would flow. “I’ve not found much of a use for it for fighting or anything like that - I’m still trying to figure out how it works to be honest with you. But hey, watch this!”

Bringing her hands together, Luz was able to manipulate the water back into a ball shape, and from that, she brought it up to her mouth, and drank from it. Once the water was consumed, she grinned at Amity. 

“I’ve got like, infinite water drinks now!” 

“...I - Is that safe? You just... Literally drank Magic.” 

“Well I tried it when I got it, and hey, I’m still totally normal.” 

“Normal is… Quite subjective when it comes to you, Luz.” 

Luz just grinned, like she was proud of that. 

Both girls sat in relative silence for a short while, and watched their friends train while Amity’s head stopped spinning. She finished drinking the water from the bottle fairly quickly, finding that the water was helping to steady her head a bit more. Honestly, she was just thankful that she didn’t have a headache. 

Silently, she cursed herself - On her own, she didn’t stand much of a chance against the Cherubim, never mind the illusions. They had been practicing solo-operations, just in case one of them got stuck away from the rest of the group. Amity was able to perform well as part of the group, able to compensate for the weaknesses that they had in physical, close proximity Magic with her sword and Abominations. On her own though, she was far less effective. 

Another reason to tell Luz how she felt. Because on her own, she was almost certainly going to wind up in the hospital, or worse. Meaning the risk of getting hit by a Cherubim Ray around others was higher, and the risk of Luz finding out in a way Amity desperately didn’t want her to was also higher. 

_ Titan, what a mess this all was. _

Taking the opportunity though, she stole a glance of Luz. The Human had apparently brought a book with her when she had gone to fetch the water, and she was passing the time by going through it. It wasn’t an Azura book - Amity would have recognized the illustrations. It seemed a lot more text heavy than what Luz would normally read. Her brow was burrowed into itself, and her hand kept her head in place. Her little finger fell from her cheek and in front of her mouth, and she chewed on the nail absently while she read. 

_ Adorable. _

Luz just had a way about her, Amity thought, that made just about everything that she did the cutest thing imaginable. Right now, she looked so serious, eager to learn and interested in what was in front of her. Even if it was for the event tomorrow, Amity couldn’t help but deeply admire that aspect of Luz. How deeply she cared about the things she was interested in. The passion that she held. 

Over the last few months, Luz had told Amity more and more about the Human world. About her life back there. About what it was like to be Luz in a world like that. 

...It hadn’t been a pretty picture. 

She fit in so well to the Boiling Isles. _ So, so well _ . She was weird, sure, but no weirder than anyone else on the Isles. It wasn’t like Amity was particularly free of her own odd quirks either. That was just part of being a person. 

But Luz’s world… It seemed to target those quirks, and abuse them. Diminish them. Batter them into the dirt. Just for being weird. For being different. The standards between the two Realms for what was ‘normal’ were staggering. 

And the stories Luz had told Amity about her time in the Human Realm… About the people there, and how they had treated her… It made Amity feel….  _ Guilty. _

Guilty that she had acted so much the same when they first met. That she had made the dream that Luz had been lucky enough to live out something that reminded her, even slightly, of the times back home that she was able to get away from here. She wished she could take it back. 

More than anything, she remembered one particular event where it had gotten too much for Luz. 

_ And she had cried.  _

It had been after the destruction of the portal back to the Human world… Not too long afterwards, actually. Maybe a week after? And Luz had been talking about Earth, telling Amity about the place she lived. And she had started to cry. 

What had caused it, Amity couldn’t say. She had been fine one moment, and the next there were tears running down her face, and it looked for all the world like she was in sudden, intense pain. Maybe it was the fact that everything had all caught up to Luz at once. Maybe it was because she hadn’t properly had the time to grieve her loss. Maybe because it was the first time she had actually talked about her home Realm ever since becoming stranded on the Isles. Amity didn’t know. 

But she held Luz. And let her cry. Told her that everything would be okay. That they could fix this together.  __

_ E...Even when the truth was… She felt... _

“You er, you’ve been staring for a while now.” Luz snapped her fingers in front of amity’s face, snapping the Witch back into reality. “Hey, Amity! You sure you’re okay there?” 

“H - Huh? O - Oh!” Amity blinked, and jolted upright. She had gotten so wrapped up in her own head - How long had she been staring? “O - Oh, no, I’m - I’m fine! Totally! Sorry. I - I was just…” Her eyes darted around quickly, before they fell back on the book on Luz’s lap. “I - I was, er, wondering, what book you have there.” 

Luz blinked and tilted her head, but apparently thought little else of it. “It’s a book about Valeween that Willow lent me.” She told Amity, holding it up so that she could see the cover. “I’ve er, been trying to get through it over the last couple days. I thought it might help if I knew what to expect on Valeween.” 

Amity nodded, and read the cover of the book. “‘Valeween for Witchlings’... I think I remember having the same book when I was younger. Just before…” 

Her sentence trailed off as she thought back throughout her memories, and remembered when she had it in her own hands. 

“...Last Valeween.” She muttered, quietly. Somehow, that part just came out. 

Almost immediately after letting the words slip past her lips, Amity regretted it, because Luz’s expression immediately changed. There was a clear concern on her face that Amity appreciated seeing - It was nice to know that she cared - But that she wished she didn’t see. She didn’t want Luz to be worrying about her over this. 

Though that was unavoidable at this point. 

“...Sorry.” The Human apologized, letting her head slump. “I didn’t - “

“No, don’t.” Amity said quickly. “Don’t apologize. It’s not your fault.” The book Luz had was common enough. Chances were high that nearly everyone on the Isles had owned a copy of it at some point in their lives. 

Valeween was an important event to know about, after all. Everyone experienced at least one before they were eleven. 

“Still though.” Luz muttered, tilting her head to look at Amity again. “I didn’t mean to remind you of that. I know it’s a bad memory for you.” 

By nature, Amity knew that Luz was a curious creature. Whenever there was some kind of even mild mystery, she would be looking to get herself involved, invested and eager to get to the bottom of it. And sometimes, admittedly, it had better outcomes than not. 

This time though, she hadn’t done that. She had respected Amity’s request for her to not pry into the situation. She hadn’t even brought it up again. She was impulsive and curious, but she wasn’t cruel. When she knew something would bother someone - Really bother someone - She left it alone. It was something she’d gotten far better with with time. 

It made processing it all again easier. 

The truth was, Amity hadn’t ever talked about that Valeween with anyone. Not even the twins knew about it. It was something that she had always kept to herself, not once ever even mentioning Valeween, or anything that could even be related to Valeween. She kept far, far away from it. 

In no small part because she was afraid of it. Of going through it again. It was why she had asked Luz not to ask about it. 

But Luz made her… Not afraid of it. 

“...It wasn’t that big a deal, really.” Amity said, leaning back against the wall. “In hindsight, it was pretty uneventful.” 

Her choice of wording confused Luz. “Wait, what? You mean the book?” 

“I meant last Valeween.” Amity clarified. “The bad one.” 

Almost instantly, Luz’s attention snapped to Amity. 

“It’s just… Unpleasant.” 

“You - You don’t have to talk about it to me if you don’t want to, you know. I wasn’t trying to imply anything, I didn’t - ” 

“I know.” Amity told her firmly, but kindly. She put on a small smile. “If it’s okay with you though, I… I think I’d like to.” 

Why she felt like she wanted to now was honestly beyond Amity. It didn’t make… Really any sort of sense. She’d spent years holding this to herself, but now, just before she planned on letting this girl know exactly how much she cared for her, she felt this urge to just… Throw this out there? 

_ Wasn’t that selfish?  _

But it didn’t change anything though. Amity just… Felt like she needed to say this. Like if she didn’t, she was going to explode. 

Luz just nodded slightly, encouraging her gently, to go at her own speed. 

She thanked the Titan that Luz was willing to listen. 

Amity took in a short inhale, and then let it out again. “It’s… Not like it was anything particularly special. Nothing too exciting or dramatic happened. I’d just gotten my hair coloured for the first time a few weeks before it. I thought it was really cool - I looked kind of like Azura. And mother seemed to like it. She was the one who even suggested it, so I was really happy.” 

“I think it suits you.” Luz commented. “It’s really… Amity, I guess?”

The comment made Amity chuckle slightly. “Thanks. Let’s see..” 

Briefly, she paused, and began to do some quick counting on her fingers. 

“...I was eight, so this was… Seven years ago. There had been a Valeween when I was two, but I don’t remember anything about it, so it was my first proper Valeween.” She shrugged. “It wasn’t anything special. We held up in the manor, and hired a bunch of mercenaries to protect the place. It didn’t work.” 

All of that was a vivid memory to Amity - She remembered hearing yelling, windows shattering, and the sounds of Magic being casted. She remembered the mercenaries that had been hired, all of them different shapes and body sizes, but all some of the best at their specialties that could be bought. It was hard to believe at the time that they were going to fail at their jobs. 

But they did. 

“You held up in the manor?” An eyebrow raised over Luz’s eye. “Isn’t everyone supposed to, like, work together to hold back the Cherubim? It’s a civic duty, according to this book. And Willow.” 

“Not everyone has a sense of civic duty like Willow.” Amity said, flatly. “Some people are going to just hide out Valeween this year around, and everyone will let them know what they think of that.” 

She put it lightly - Those people were going to be outcasts for years, until the next Valeween, and the stigma would only truly die if they contributed to the city in the meantime, or fought alongside the town come the next invasion. 

“But my parents made a big show out of donating to the defences of Bonesbrough, and that seemed to be enough to save face.” 

“There are people like that on Earth too.” Luz grumbled. 

Amity continued. “The Cherubim got into the house, and found us. Both my parents got hit by the Cherubim Rays.” Another brief pause followed. “One of the mercenaries got in and got rid of the Cherubim before it hit me, or before it mutated. Too late to do anything about mother and father though. They stood up, and their eyes were blue. They weren’t even trying to fight it.” 

Another piece of information Luz had learned while reading the book - The influence of the Cherubim could be fought off if someone had sufficient will. The issue was, it was reportedly excruciatingly painful to do so in a lot of cases, and not a lot of people could do it. And those that could only manage to hold out for a short while. 

Amity let herself look towards Luz. Reading her expression was difficult for the Human. Amity looked… Not sad. Not upset. More… 

..Resigned. 

“...Do you know what they told me? The first thing they told me when they saw me?” 

All Luz could do was shake her head. “What?” 

_ “‘You are a means to an end.’”  _

That made Luz shudder. 

“They went down the list.” Amity continued, though now, her face and eyes stared towards the sky. Her voice was calm. Distressingly so. “I’m only as valuable as my standing, anything less than perfect isn’t good enough, I’m a tool to continue the Blight legacy… That even my natural hair was a stain on the image of the family. ‘Green is our colour. The twins have green hair. Why couldn’t you?’” 

That in particular made Luz’s teeth grit. “What kind of - “ 

“The worst part was I already knew that.” 

That made Luz stop dead in her tracks. 

Amity just sighed again, but weirdly, she had a small smile on her lips. “You already know my parents and I don’t get on. You saw what they made me do with Willow, and how they ruined our friendship. Just because  _ ‘Blights don’t associate with weak Witches’ _ .” She made little finger quotes as she repeated that line, and almost scoffed at it. “...I already knew what I was to them. But I… Told myself that wasn’t the case. I thought that maybe if I could… I don’t know, prove myself to them, that maybe they’d…” 

The weak smile fell. Her head fell, and hung low. 

“...I don’t know what I thought would happen. But just hearing them say it, so calmly, so easily, so… Readily, without even trying to fight it… They never gave a damn if I knew or didn’t. The only reason they didn’t tell me outright was because I would have caused a scene or something. That's the only reason they even let me pretend that wasn’t the case. That's why they kept it a secret.” 

A pause followed. A long one. Luz didn’t know what to say in response. 

All she knew was a burning pit of fury was making itself known to her, the likes of which she’d only felt close to when she fought Lilith back in the Emperor's Castle.

How could she? What kind of - Of demented  _ monsters _ would say something like that to their own child? How could someone be that cruel to them? To just treat them like they were some sort of tool - Like she was only worth whatever return of investment she brought! 

Amity was a  _ person! _ She was worth more than that! 

“... _ ’You’re a disappointment.’” _ Amity muttered suddenly. “That was the worst one.” 

She looked back at Luz. 

“Everything made sense after that. All the tutors, the training, even my hair getting dyed… It’s all to fix whatever ‘mistakes’ I made, or were. Everything that wasn’t perfect, they tried to change about me. My friends, my Magic… All of it… I didn’t get a choice in any of it. The next day, when everything was over, they looked at me, and nothing had changed. They didn’t care if I knew. It didn’t change anything.” 

What in the Realm was Luz supposed to say to that? 

“It’s better like this.” Amity said, shaking her head. “At least I don’t have to pretend that I’m going to earn the respect of people who only see me as some sort of tool. I prefer to just… Know.” 

“I…” Luz tried to find words to say. She didn’t have a clue what though. Everything she could think to say now felt like it would be nothing more than a platitude at best, and the worst thing to say at worst. Even her compliment of Amity’s hair was something she wished she could now take back, understanding now exactly what it represented. “...I - I didn’t know it was… I… I - I’m sorry, Amity. I…” 

Amity let herself smile gently at Luz. “You don’t need to say anything, you know. This was… Me just being selfish, I guess. I - “ 

_ “It’s not selfish!”  _

The response Amity got was so sudden and so loud, it made her jump - And made a few of the people closer to them jump, so they could stare at the source for a few seconds before returning to their various training regimens. 

Both of them stared at one another for a second - Luz looking like she was on the verge of getting onto her feet, charging to Blight manor, and demanding answers. Amity didn’t put it past Luz, either. 

Even if she did, she wasn’t going to find any there if she did though, as her parents still hadn’t returned from their unannounced trip to an undisclosed location on the island. 

Probably because, wherever they were, they were planning on waiting out Valeween there this year. To avoid another ‘Incident’, Amity had figured by now. 

But Luz didn’t get up. 

What she did instead was throw herself at Amity, and pull her into the biggest hug she had ever given anyone in her entire life. 

These hugs were something that Amity still wasn’t used to - The physical contact, the closeness, the fuzzy warmth it brought to her chest, the fact it was always Luz who was giving them - Aside from feeling her face heat up and her heart beat harder, she never knew what to do with herself whenever they happened. 

“...You deserve so much better than that.” 

Luz had spoken so softly then, so gently, and so honestly, that Amity’s heart fluttered more than she ever remembered it doing before. She hadn’t been sure what response to expect. Not… This. That was for certain. She didn’t know what to say. 

It had been a very simple seven words, but they had been… 

… Exactly what Amity had needed to hear right then. 

She didn’t realize it right away, but tears began to prick at the sides of her eyes. 

Tentatively, she returned the hug, and relished the embrace. She wasn’t used to them - That didn’t mean she didn’t like them. 

Very much the opposite was true. She adored them. 

As much as she adored Luz. For so many reasons. 

Luz was honest. She was authentic. And she would never ask Amity to change. Because somehow, she saw the mess of a person that Amity was deep down, and didn’t even flinch. She still treated Amity like anyone else. 

Saw her as a friend. 

And Amity loved that about her. 

**‘It is possible to be able to hold out against the effects of the Cherubim Ray, and to prevent oneself from speaking brutal honesty to those around them - Doing so requires an immense will, and the ability to withstand a high level of pain. Most Witches can at least hold back for a couple of seconds, but to be able to hold off for any longer is considered rare.’**

**-Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 3, page 31**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah I couldn't find the time to make any art for this chapter - Sorry about that. I'll try to make some art for it before this story is over. Right now I'm just focused on getting to a certain point before Halloween specifically. 
> 
> We got our first glimpse of what exactly the Cherubim are capable of in this chapter, and Amity, the poor soul, has gone through way too much relative to her age - She needs many hugs. 
> 
> Honestly, don't have much to say about this chapter - I hope you all enjoyed, and I'll see you all hopefully tomorrow - See you!


	5. Ved'ma

**‘The home residency of the Cherubim is a mystery, but it is assumed to be another Realm - As their portal opens in the sky, and they return to it after Valeween is over, and there is no evidence of them existing on the Isles as a native species.’** **  
****\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 4, page 36**

Training for the rest of the day went by as uneventfully as possible. Just a couple more hours of more of the same, honing skills in preparation for the arrival tomorrow. Training any more than that would only serve to wear them out.

For Amity, things became lighter. Easier to handle. It was like a weight was lifted from her shoulders. Valeween held so many bad memories for her, and the ability to just be able to talk about them with someone who would listen, who Amity knew wouldn’t judge her… It was liberating. 

As if Amity needed a reminder of why it was Luz made her feel the way that she did. 

The training continued until it was about four in the afternoon. After continuous use of Magic for so long, exhaustion was going to quickly catch up. But the session, like the one that they had the day prior, had been productive, and installed a feeling of confidence in all of the Witches. 

All of them were better at spellcasting and fighting than they had been before the sessions. That much was beyond self-evident. 

Either way, it would have to be enough. 

“What do you think?” Willow asked Amity as she cast a Magic Circle, clearing up the plants she had summoned. “Do you think we’ll be okay?” 

Amity considered for a moment, and then nodded her head. “I think so. If everyone else has been practicing as much as we have, then I think we’ll be okay this time around.” 

“It would be nice to think that this was all just an overreaction.”

“Agreed.” 

There was a brief pause in their conversation as Amity pulled her sword from its sheath, and inspected it. It had been up against illusions, so it hadn’t dulled all that much. Nevertheless though, she cast a Magic Circle and ran a sharpening spell along the edge. Better to be safe than to be sorry.

As she did, she turned and asked. “Hey, so, er… Do you mind me asking what that was all about with Boscha, earlier?” 

Willow glanced at Amity from the corner of her eye, and then turned back to her plants. With one more swipe of her finger, the result of her clean-up was done. She turned back to amity. “What about it?” 

“Boscha was acting kind of weird, wasn’t she?” 

“She’s stopped treating me like I’m literal trash if that's what you mean.” 

“You said you didn’t believe the rumours though.” Amity pointed out. “And, yeah, after seeing her like that today, I don’t know if I do either, but... “ She tried to find the right wording. “...I’ve never known Boscha to be the kind of person to apologize. And it seemed like she apologized because you were angry at what she said to Luz. And I’m sure I heard you say something about how you think she’d changed a little. I don’t know, I thought maybe you knew something about it I didn’t.” 

A small sigh escaped from Willow, and her arms folded up. “It’s… Nothing. You remember got assigned to work on that partner project a while ago, and we… Kind of got along? She didn’t act how she used to towards me. We’re not friends or anything, but it’s…” Another sigh. “It’s not like I get anything out of fighting with her. I’d rather we just stay out of each other’s way.” 

She shrugged. 

“I thought maybe she’d changed a bit. And if she did, maybe we could even be friends.” 

“You’re far more forgiving than I am.” Amity muttered. “I still don’t know how you found it in you to give me another chance, never mind Boscha.” 

“You changed.” Was Willow’s only response. “People deserve a second chance if they change.” 

“Does Boscha?” 

Willow frowned. Clearly the question was one she was still debating in her mind. “...I thought that maybe she did. Now I don’t know.” 

“...Sorry I asked.” Amity apologized, finishing up her sharpening, and returning the sword to its sheath. “I didn’t mean to pry.”

“Don’t worry about it. You were, uh…” Willow paused. She had been about to say ‘friends’, but remembered that the term hadn’t really been all that accurate. “...Around one another for a long time. It makes sense you’d be curious.” 

A sighed escaped Amity this time, and she got onto her feet. “I suppose. I just… I remember being between where I was, and wanting to be better. And if Boscha’s in the same position…” A pause. Then Amity shook her head, and folded her arms. “If she approached you, that would be up to you, I suppose.” 

“You remember when we were little kids?” Willow asked, suddenly. “When things weren’t ever this complicated, and we just got to throw away days doing whatever we wanted, and didn’t have to worry about stuff like this?” 

A brief wave of nostalgia hit Amity, and she smiled as she briefly thought back throughout the friendship she and Willow had shared when they were younger, before her parents forced her to sever ties. It was still weird to her to think back on those memories now, and not be flooded with a tidal wave of regret and crippling remorse. She still felt bad of course, but her mended relationship with Willow made looking back on those past events less painful. 

Just another thing she owed to Luz.

“Yeah…” Amity nodded. As she did though, she glanced towards Luz’s direction. The Human had taken up a spot against the wall of the clearing, and was looking through the Valeween for Witchlings book again, as she waited on the rest of her friends clearing up the effects of their Magic. She noticed that Amity was looking her way though, and looked up, smiled, and waved. 

And Amity waved back, and that wide, stupid grin that she had spent months learning how to keep under control around Luz spread all over her lips as she did. 

“...But I… I think I prefer things like this.” 

Willow just smirked. “I wonder why.” 

That made Amity blush, but she didn’t make any effort to deny the implied accusation. Mostly because she knew Willow was well aware of her feelings towards Luz, and had been for a while now. Denying it would be pointless. 

She didn’t make an active effort to tease her for her feelings though, so Amity was grateful for that at least - But she would always wear that particularly smug smirk whenever she saw Amity getting flustered. Thankfully she never said a word of it to Luz. Never even breathed a word of it to her. And she had never ‘confronted’ Amity about it either. It was more something that she just put together herself, and acknowledged. It only ever really came up occasionally between the two of them, usually in passing, when Luz did something to really affect Amity for how cute it was. 

And Willow would take whatever shots she could get whenever the opportunity presented itself. Mostly through giving Amity knowing smirks. That was more than enough to get to Amity.

If Willow ever fell in love with someone, Amity had already decided she was _never_ going to let her hear the end of it. 

“...Are you gonna be okay?” The bespectacled girl asked, just a few seconds later. The teasing edge to her voice was gone. When Amity turned to her, she elaborated. “I… Know that not everyone has the same… Perspective on the Cherubim that I do. Or that things always work out as well as they did for my dads. I just… Are you going to be okay, tomorrow? Even with all of this, there’s still a pretty big chance we all get hit by a Ray, you know. Are you gonna be okay if that happens?” 

For all the anguish that Amity had played a part in throughout Willows life, the last few months had gone a long way to re-establishing the connection they had. Willow would admit to being concerned about her friends well being in such an event. For all she would tease her about it, the last thing Willow wanted was to see Amity heartbroken. 

And it was a fair question to ask, Amity thought. For any number of reasons, especially pragmatic ones. If she got hit or Luz got hit, and it… Didn’t go well, then would she be of any use whatsoever afterwards, or would she just be dead weight against the Cherubim? Much of the training that they had done today had led to the conclusion that the four of them worked well as a group, and that they needed to be able to back and depend on one another. 

Of course, Willow meant emotionally. But there were pragmatic reasons to be concerned too. 

Another reason she had to do this today. 

“...I’m going to tell her. Today.” Amity revealed, making a distinct effort to keep her voice firm. The more she thought about it, the more that it made sense to, and felt like really the only option available to her. The other option, the more she thought about it… 

The more that it could put others in danger too. Even if she got rejected, and even if it stung - She couldn’t let the rest of them down. She couldn’t. 

Clearly, the announcement caught Willow off guard. “S - Seriously? Are you -” She took a second to compose herself, before she carried on. “...Are you sure about this?” 

Amity nodded. “I… I am. I’d rather she hear it from me than a version of me made to by a Cherubim.” Her heart began to beat quicker as she reminded herself of her mission here today. “I… I want her to know… Exactly how much better she’s made my life by being a part of it.” 

She couldn’t be sure if she was even going to get to chose the words that she spoke when affected by a Cherubim - At least if she did this today, she would get to use the words that she wanted to, to highlight just how much of a force of good Luz had had on her life. 

Luz deserved to hear that. She deserved to know how important she was. 

And Amity wanted to do that on her terms. At least then if it all went bad, she only had herself to blame. 

Honestly, she still didn’t know if she was making any real logical sense. Or if her reasons and logic were only coherent in her own head. Either way, it didn’t matter. It didn’t change what she felt she needed to do today. 

_It had to be today, because tomorrow would be far too late._

For a moment, Willow didn’t say anything, For some reason, that made Amity nervous - Like maybe she had found a flaw in Amity’s plan that Amity herself had just ignored or overlooked, or knew something that Amity didn’t. 

“I’ll make sure Gus and I hang back for a bit.” Willow then offered. “Give both of you time to clear out so you can find someplace alone.” 

A breath that Amity hadn’t been aware she had been holding in escaped her, and she turned to Willow, a weak, exhausted smile already on her lips. “...Thank you.” 

“You’ll be fine.” Willow nodded, and she spoke confidently. “But good luck anyway.” 

“Thanks.” 

Another nod of acknowledgement, and then Willow turned, and made her way towards Gus. Whatever she was telling him to make him hang back, Amity didn’t know, but she was pretty confident that she wasn’t telling him of her plan. Willow had far more tact and basic respect than that. It was weird to imagine her lying through. 

Now though, there wasn’t anything stopping her. All she needed to do was get Luz somewhere where they were alone, gather some courage…

...And either make the single best, or single worst choice she’d ever made in her life. 

...She _really_ wasn’t ready for this. 

_It was this, or it was having her ability to do this on her own terms taken from her,_ she reminded herself. She took a few inhales. She could do this. 

She could do this.

She turned back towards Luz. The Human was still reading her book. 

_She could do this._

Amity made her way over towards Luz. “Hey, um, Luz, I think Willow and Gus are hanging back for… Some reason. So, um… Sh-Should we get going?” 

Luz didn’t respond. At all. Her eyes remained firmly on the book. 

“Er… Luz?” 

Still nothing. 

“Luz!” 

The third time did provoke a response from Luz - She looked up towards Amity, but there was something… Vacant about her expression. Something that was difficult to read at a glance. 

It was like she’d realized something morbid. Something that made her deeply, deeply uncomfortable

“A...Are you alright?” Amity asked, feeling herself gulp as she asked. For some reason, the look Luz had on her face made her anxious. 

“... It’s a portal.” 

“Uh… What?” 

“How the Cherubim get here!” Luz held up the book onto a double page spread, so Amity could clearly see it - It showed off the arrival of the Cherubim - Arriving from their gate in the sky. 

When Valeween night rolled around, two things would happen - All plant-life on the Boiling Isles that had turned black by the Cherubim’s Magic would sprout eyes of all shapes and sizes, and face the sky. From said eyes, they would emit bursts of Magical light, concentrated into a singular point. 

And from that singular point, the Cherubim Gate would open - And from that, the Cherubim would descend. 

“Er… Yeah, I suppose?” Amity supposed that if someone wanted to, they could call the Cherubim Gate a portal. It wasn’t what anyone on the Isles really did, but it wouldn’t be an inaccurate term, either. 

Luz took the book back, and looked at the image again. She looked… Mesmerized by it, for lack of a better word. “I didn’t know there were other portals to other Realms here…” 

“That one comes naturally.” Amity explained. “We can’t recreate a portal to the Cherubim Realm.” 

“What about other Realms?” 

“We… Don’t know about any, but it’s possible in theory, I suppose.” 

“What about one to the Human Realm?” 

Amity fell completely silent. 

The only portal to the Human Realm had been destroyed by Luz. At least, the only portal that was known about. She assumed it was the only one that was known about - Not even the Emperor seemed to know if there was another one out there, since he had targeted Eda in no small part for her access to a portal to the Human Realm, and only agreed to release her when Luz was willing to exchange it for her mentor. 

Luz hadn’t… Mentioned that portal in…

... _A long time._

“It’s… It’s Halloween back home.” Luz explained. “I’ve been here for six months. I should have been home three months ago. My mom, she... I used to keep a video diary on my phone. I checked it the other day and I made my last entry… Months ago. I used it to feel like I was still in touch with her, but I…” 

She looked at Amity, and her expression had now changed. 

It was one wracked with guilt. 

“...I didn’t even mention her in like, more than half of them. I didn’t even mention Earth…” Her line of sight broke with Amity’s. “...I don’t even think about her or Earth that much anymore. It’s like I… Like I’m forgetting her.” 

Luz then gripped a tight hold of the strap on her bag. 

“If the Cherubim have a portal to get here, and Eda had a portal to the Human Realm, then that has to mean that there are other portals, or ways of opening portals, or - Or something, right? They can’t be the only two who’re able to use them - Maybe Witches had portals to other Realms in the past or - I don’t know, maybe they had spells or ideas or something that helped them, or gave them an idea of what they were doing! Maybe there’s a cave or something with a secret portal or… I don’t know…” 

She looked up at the sky - Tomorrow, a portal would be overhead. And she’d be helping to fight off the Cherubim. They would have a Realm to go back to. 

And a part of Luz knew that it was going to take a long time to ever really find a way back to her home Realm, but… 

“...I still want to find a portal back to Earth.” She affirmed, though it was mostly for her own sake. It wasn’t much to go off of, but she looked back at the pages of the book she held. “This thing mentioned that there are a bunch of ruins that Wild Witches used to use to try and contact the Cherubim in their home Realm. I’m going to the library. I want to see if I can find out anything about that.” 

It was more than probable that she wasn’t going to find anything, and she knew that perfectly well - It was barely even a connection to the Human Realm. More like a tangential, coincidental similarity - Like how a brick was similar to an orange in that they were both objects, and that was about it. But it was the only thing that she had even the slightest lead on regarding getting back to Earth in months. That was better than nothing. And if it turned out to be nothing, well… 

...At least she would be able to live day-by-day on the Isles with the knowledge that she had explored every avenue she could have, until she came across something else. 

It wasn’t like it was a huge rush either. She wasn’t desperate to leave the Isles, or even want to leave the Isles. . 

All she wanted to do was let her mother know she was safe. 

“The…. There’s one of those ruins not too far from here.” Amity revealed quietly. Luz turned back to her, eyes wide at that. “The Ved’ma Temple. It’s been… There isn’t really much of anything there, so no one really goes there. I don’t know if you’d find anything, but…”

“Wait, seriously?” Luz perked up. “Where is it?” 

“I… I could take you there, if you want.” Amity offered. “I didn’t have… Anything important planned after this.” 

Amity put on a smile. 

It had never felt more fake in her entire life.

* * *

In the six months Luz had spent on the Isles, it was easy for her to feel like she’s explored just about every part of the place - The Isles were, after all, based on the body of a fallen Titan. There was only so much space available on the Isles. It was easy to think that she’d seen all there was to be seen, at least on the surface level. 

Whenever she found herself thinking that, it really didn’t tend to take long before she was proven wrong. And Amity was about to do that yet again.

Luz had never even heard of anything approximating the Ved’ma temple, or about it’s general existence until Amity had brought it up - She hadn’t even heard about the existence of these Wild Witch ruins until the book told her about them. It raised the question of exactly how much of the Isles she had really seen. She made a mental note to go out exploring the Isles again at some point, see if she could find anything more. 

Amity had led her down a path that was similar to the one that took them to the Knee, only it diverged a couple of times, and wound up taking them around the Femur. All the plant life here was as black as the rest of the Isles, but Luz couldn’t help but feel that it was somehow more fitting here. 

Throughout the trip there, Amity had been fairly quiet. By this point, it was starting to get a bit unnerving. Neither of them really walked in silence like this anymore. They had grown too close over the last few months for that, and every walk they had was usually accompanied by them talking about basically anything that came to mind, so walking like this was… Unsettling. 

“Hey, so, er…” Luz started, quickly trying to think up a topic to discuss. “How’d you know about this place?” 

She got no response. Amity kept on walking, her line of sight still focused on the path she walked. It looked like she was walking on automatic. 

Concerned, Luz tapped Amity’s shoulder, and raised her voice a little. “Amity?” 

“ _Huh, what?_ ” The physical contact seemed to pull Amity out of her trance. She stopped walking for a brief moment, and looked around for a moment, like she was taking stock on where she even was. “I - Oh. Sorry. I - I was… There was something on my mind, that's all.” 

“You okay?” Luz asked, her expression turning into one of concern. “We can head back if you like, if you wanna do this some other day.” 

“I - It’s fine. I’m the one who offered to show you this place, aren’t I?” 

“Yeah, but I don’t want you to if you’ve got other stuff bothering you. If you’ve got other stuff on your mind I don’t mind waiting until you’re totally up for this.” 

“It’s… It’s nothing.” Amity lied. “Really, it’s…” She paused for a moment. They were practically completely alone at this point. Exactly like she had wanted. 

If she wanted to do it now, she could. 

_...But she couldn’t._

“...I just… I’m sorry, I was thinking about earlier.” She told Luz. “About everything that I told you about the last Valeween.” 

“Are you okay?” Immediately, Luz’s voice turned to one of concern. “I - I didn’t mean to drag you out here after all that - “ 

“No, I just… I wanted to thank you. For, you know… Listening to all of that.” Amity scratched at the back of her head - It was genuinely something that she wanted Luz to know she appreciated to no end. “I… I haven’t told anyone else about that. Not even Edric and Emira know. You’re the… First person I felt like I could trust with all of that. So… Thanks.” 

It hadn’t been what Luz had expected to hear, but it made her smile all the same. “Hey, we’re friends, aren’t we? You just need to tell me if you need anyone for anything like that again.” 

Amity smiled softly. “Thank you.” 

That was the kind of person that Luz was - All any of her friends needed to do was reach out to her, and she would immediately be there to do whatever she could to help them out, no matter what the situation was that they found themselves in. She was always willing to put herself into the line of fire to help her friends. 

Anyone would be lucky to have her as a friend. 

Amity considered herself blessed to be Luz’s friend. She knew if their roles were reversed, Luz would do everything in her power to help her. It was why she was here now. She owed Luz that much. 

...Even when it stung like all manner of Hell. 

_It has to be today._ She kept repeating to herself. Trying to find it in her to go through with this. _It has to be today._

_It…_

“...Come on.” Amity said, and gestured down the path they had been walking down. ”We should keep going.” 

Luz nodded, and followed Amity down said path. “So, where’d you find out about this place?” 

“We get taught about them at Hexside, in the earlier years.” 

“Ah.”

Her original question answered, Luz walked alongside Amity in relative silence again, but it was more comfortable this time. At least for her. 

Not so much for Amity.

It took the two of them about ten minutes to reach the temple from where they had stopped. They had walked a fair distance around the Femur, and a bit of a distance from it. Amity led the Human to a clearing in the middle of a dense section of forests, and Luz realized just from sight alone, even with no reference to work from, that this was the temple. 

“Here we are.” Amity revealed, anyway. “This is the Ved’ma temple. It’s not much, but it’s the nearest one.” 

The Ved’ma Temple was about as run down and fitting of the word ‘ruins’ as anything could get. It had fallen into disrepair over the ages, and the walls of the place that were still standing showed clear signs of an ancient battle. If that was what had caused the place to collapse, or if it had simply taken the strike, but withstood the test of time in spite of it, it was hard to tell. 

Again, Luz had no real frame of reference for the ruins themselves, since she didn’t know… Anything about Boiling Isles architecture. There was one main building that looked kind of like an Aztec flat-top pyramid, with a single room on top of it. The whole structure was about as tall as a house. 

Surrounding it were the remains of walls and other structures that had crumbled away and been knocked down, similar to the sorts that she has seen while on the peak of the Knee. They were scattered all around the clearing and distances that were seemingly random, and she could see a few pieces of stone that were overgrown by the flora of the Isles.

“...It kinda reminds me of some old ruins back on Earth.” Luz said aloud. “Just… Smaller.” 

Nothing about it was all that in depth or really that impressive, outside of its historical value. It seemed to be made out of simple materials, made easily by Magic, and compared to what Luz could reference it to, was fairly small. Especially when the Isles had said Magic. On Earth, this place would probably have been sectioned off, and turned into a tourist trap, and photos of it would be turned into fridge magnets for people who came to visit it. On the Isles though, it was just sort of left alone. Luz had to wonder what sort of cultural difference between the Isles and Earth had led to this particular outcome. 

Either way, they were here now - So, where to start? 

Luz pulled out the book from her bag, and flipped through the pages that talked about the temples, hoping that she’d be able to find any sign of what she could be looking out for here. Naturally though, there was nothing - Which made sense when she actually thought about it. If there had been something noteworthy about the place that related to portals to other Realms, it would be pretty common knowledge, and not the wild goose chase that it was now. 

She put the book back into her bag, and began to climb up the steps of the pyramid-structure. Amity followed close behind her. 

The structure at the top was a single room, and not a particularly large one at that. It was about the size of the room that Luz had back in the Owl House, but without the comfort. The relative size of it compared to the structure made it seem a lot smaller than it was. No objects were found in the room whatsoever - It was empty. 

What there was though, were paintings. Murals, done directly into the walls. She couldn’t really interpret what they were supposed to mean though - It was all abstract, created by a different species, and designed for interpretation by a culture that had died long before Luz had ever even been born. Colours and shapes blended into one another in a way that made no sense to the Human. A triangle with a single eye overlooking it all was about as clear as it got, but the rest of it didn’t make sense. For Luz, it was like she was visiting an alien planet, and being shown what they interpreted as art. 

But it was still an incredible sight to behold. The artist in her was, admittedly, fascinated by it all. 

Now if only she had a degree in ancient arts. And… Any knowledge whatsoever on Boiling Isles art.

“Oh, wow.” Amity said once she entered the room after the Human. She took a second to inspect them. 

“Does any of this make any sense to you?” Luz asked. Amity was a native to the Isles, and was a top student in just about every class she took. If this had any meaning, she would be the one to know. 

“Not really.” Amity admitted. “It just looks like a bunch of old Wild Witches art. We learned about it in classes once but I don’t think any of the teachers knew what to make of it either.” 

Luz sighed. There really was nothing here, like Amity had said from the start. She had known that it was a longshot, but she couldn’t help but feel disappointed either way. What had she really expected to happen here? 

What in the world had she hoped to find, exactly? 

They’d only been here for what, five minutes, and already there was nothing left to explore. It wasn’t like they were going to find the secret to interdimensional travel just scratched into any of the surrounding walls or ruined structures. In hindsight, the idea that maybe they would be able to felt stupid to Luz. 

“...You okay?” 

Luz blinked, and saw Amity looking at her with a look of concern. Amity had been the one to bring Luz out here. There almost seemed to be a look of guilt in her expression. 

One that shouldn’t have been there - Amity had warned Luz up front that there was little to expect here, and as always, she had been honest about it. Luz was the one that had gotten her hopes up. That wasn’t Amity’s fault in the least. 

“Yeah…” Luz nodded. “Just… A bit disappointed, I guess.” She let out another sigh, and shrugged. “I dunno. You said there wasn’t anything here but… I guess maybe I hoped there would be something obvious just staring us in the face that no one else noticed or something.” 

“There are… There are other ruins on the Isles. One of them might be able to help.” 

Once again, Luz nodded. “...Maybe. Yeah, maybe,” 

Pragmatically speaking, the venture had been absolutely nothing but a waste of time. Well, seeing some ancient Wild Witches art was admittedly cool, but it didn’t help Luz get any closer to letting her mother know that she was okay, safe, and happy. She was no closer to fixing the issue that had been plaguing her mind for the last two days and three nights. 

So why did she feel... 

...Relieved?

* * *

The two of them spent only a short amount of time actually looking at the art, hoping to maybe find something that would be recognizable to them, and would make the entire mural make sense to her. Unfortunately, nothing did. All that made sense to either of them was the triangle with an eye inside of it, and the rest was incomprehensible… If there had ever been much of a point to it in the first place. 

For all they knew, it was an ancient Wild Witches nursery, where the kids had gotten hold of paint and scribbled all over the walls. They really were just in the complete blind. 

But it gave them something to talk about on the way back, at least.

“Maybe it was one of their Gods or something.” Luz suggested. “Sometimes old cultures would have their Gods have like, crocodiles for heads back on Earth. Maybe they did something similar but with shapes.”

“I… Have no idea what a crocodile is.” Amity reminded Luz, but she tilted her head either way, considering the idea. “But… Maybe. That particular temple is really old. Some of the more modern temples are a lot closer to what we have. It’s only natural that they would have a different sense of what art is.” 

“Do you know a lot about the old Wild Witches?” Luz asked. 

“Not really.” Amity shrugged. “There's not a lot of information on them in general. It’s kind of a blind spot in our history.” 

This had become their dynamic over the course of Luz’s time in the Isles, and throughout her friendship with Amity. Both of them were able to talk about basically anything, even if they both knew next to nothing about it. Conversation was easy with Amity. Arguably easier than it was with anyone else that Luz had come to know in her life. 

It was weird for her to think about how rough their relationship had started out. It felt like such a long, long time ago, but six months really wasn’t that long a period of time, relatively speaking. And so much had happened in those six months. Luz smiled to herself. It was hard to think about how rough their relationship had been before... 

But now it was almost impossible for her to imagine what the Boiling Isles would be like without Amity being there. 

“After tomorrow, I’m going to visit the rest of the temples.” Luz told the Witch. “Maybe they’ll be more helpful.“ She smiled. “You wanna come with? Maybe there’ll be more cool murals there too!” 

Amity just nodded. Slowly, but Luz didn’t notice that. 

And then she stopped. 

“...Luz?” 

Her voice was a lot more solemn. Serious. She wasn’t even looking at Luz as she addressed her. Luz stopped in her tracks. 

Was she okay? 

“...About tomorrow.” Amity started. Luz could see that her hands had balled up into fists. “...I have… You said if I needed anything, I just needed to tell you, right?” 

“Yeah?...” 

“...I have something I need to tell you.” 

Lu’s head tilted. “What is it?” 

The green-haired Witches shoulders slumped, and she turned to look at Luz. There was a clear tension and anxiety to the way she moved. She wouldn’t meet Luz’s eyes. She looked at her, but it was obvious she was making an effort to not look her directly in the eye. 

Or wasn’t able to. 

“...I want you to stay away from me tomorrow.” 

Luz just blinked, and it took her a moment to really process what she had just been told. “Wait, what? What d’you mean?” 

“Exactly what it sounds like.” Amity said, plainly. Though Luz couldn’t see it, Amity was saying it through firmly clenched teeth. “I want you to stay away from me during Valeween.” 

Something about how it was said - Something Luz couldn’t put her finger on - Made hearing what was being said feel unreal. Almost like Amity didn’t even want to be saying what she was saying right now. 

“What’re you talking about? I thought we were going to meet up with Gus and Willow and try and help with the defenses. We’ve spent the last two days training for it!” 

“I was going to, but… I can’t. Something has come up.” 

A pause. “What is it? Can I -” 

“No.” Amity said, firmly. Her voice noticeably raised. “You can’t.” 

All Luz could really do was stand there - Where in the world had this suddenly come from?

There was so much wrong with what Amity was saying here that it made Luz feel like she had suddenly started talking to a different person. She hadn’t mentioned anything that would get in the way of them all meeting up tomorrow, and half of their strategy depended on them all being there to back each other up, and compensate for one another’s weaknesses. 

And the way that she talked - It was defensive. Deeply defensive. She hadn’t talked like this since… 

Since before the Wailing Star and the Library Incident. 

“Amity, what - What’s going on?” She asked, almost feeling herself panic, for reasons she didn’t fully comprehend herself. “Where is this coming from?” 

The Witch turned away from Luz, and made a very clear effort to hide her eyes from Luz’s sight, letting her hair pass by her pointed ears and in front of her face - Something she never let happen with her hair while it was tied up. 

“...Does it matter?” 

“Yes! It does!” She hadn’t meant to, but Luz found that she was now yelling at her friend. “I don’t know where this came from but something is clearly bothering you! I wanna help - “ 

“You can’t!” Amity suddenly yelled right back at Luz. She turned back towards the Human, her eyebrow burrowed into an expression of… 

...It looked like anger. 

“I already told you that you can’t help! Why do I need to explain it more to you than that?!” 

“I - I just don’t understand, Amity! You’re not making any sense - This - I don’t know where any of this has come from!” 

Just a few minutes ago, they had been happily talking about the paintings on the walls of the Wild Witches Temple, and now they were yelling at one another, for reasons that were beyond Luz! 

What had changed? What was going on? 

Why was Amity acting like this towards her? 

_What had she done wrong?_

“You’re my friend! I want to help you, but I can’t if I don’t know what’s wrong!” 

Amity gripped at the side of her clothing, and her eyes fell to the ground. She was shaking. 

“...Why don’t you get it?” Amity muttered, and looked up at Luz. There was still a look of anger, but there was something else there. 

Luz could have sworn it was sadness. 

“You always do this. Every single time! Whenever someone tells you not to push something, you always do! You did this with Willow, you did this with Eda, and now you’re doing it with me! Why can’t you just let something go?!” 

“Hey!” Luz yelled back, suddenly defensive. “I didn’t pry into you not wanting to talk about Valeween, did I?!” 

“And I told you about it in the end, didn’t I?!” 

“You said you wanted to!” 

“And I don’t want to for this! You accepted it before - Why can’t you accept it now?!” 

“Because this is clearly hurting you!” 

“You don’t know the first thing about it!” 

“Then tell me!” 

“I can’t!” 

“Why not?!” 

“Because - ” The more that Amity yelled, the more she allowed herself to speak, the more sick to her stomach she felt herself getting. She looked away from Luz - She couldn’t look at her. Not like this. “Because I don’t want your help! Because you can’t help! Because all you would do is make everything a thousand times worse! Because - “ She stopped herself. 

She hadn’t meant for it to get this bad.

 _How in the world had it happened?_

“...Just stay away from me, Luz.” 

And then she turned and walked away, leaving Luz alone on the trail, confused and angry and sad all at the same time, with no idea what just happened or why. 

Unable to see the tears that were running down Amity’s face. 

Internally screaming at herself for being the _horrible, selfish coward_ that she really was. 

**Upon their destruction, Cherubim disappear into a puff of smoke. This does not mean that the Cherubim has ‘died’ however - they appear to reincarnate back within their own Realm, in a manner akin to a phoenix, and will rejoin the invasion force once they have done so. This means that the only way to render them completely ineffective during the Valeween invasion is to trap them, and make them unable to reincarnate. Containment is therefore considered a top priority for anyone who fights the Cherubim.** **  
****-Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 4, page 33**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wonder how many of you saw this coming.  
> Wonder what Amity’s logic is for exploding like that. 
> 
> I always feel kind of anxious about doing storylines like this because it feels like it’s come out of nowhere, but the next chapter reveals the characters internal logic to make sense, so, if ya’ll come back tomorrow you’ll figure that out. 
> 
> From this point the story writing is more or less entirely by me, so again, the speed will slow down after Halloween, but I’ll be doing my best to bring out chapters as quickly as possible, and tomorrow's chapter will be the spark, shall we say? 
> 
> I hope ya’ll enjoyed this chapter, and I’ll be seeing you in the next chapter - See ya!


	6. Hurt

Time felt like it passed at a snail's pace as Luz made her way back to the Owl house. Far, far too many emotions and thoughts were spinning through her head for time to feel like it was proceeding at a normal pace. Things felt slow, and sluggish. 

Even walking down the path back to Bonesbrough and to the Owl House - Paths that she had taken a thousand times before - Felt alien, and time-dilated to the absolute slowest possible point. 

Not at all helping was feeling like there was a giant ball of lead in her stomach. 

Eventually though, she made her way back to the Owl House, though what probably amounted to an hour long walk felt like it had taken three days. She didn’t know how she looked, but she could only assume that it was like a mess. She certainly felt like one. Mercifully, Hooty didn’t say a word to her as she approached, like he was able to himself see the state that she was in, and opted not to risk making it worse. 

When the Human entered, Eda could immediately see that something was bothering the young Human, but could tell by the look on her face, and the way that she carried herself meant that more than anything else, she didn’t want to talk about it. It was one of those things that one had to pick up by observing Luz, and the way her body language communicated a wide number of things, mostly in what it didn’t show - When Luz was fine, she was expressive and energized. She wasn’t now. 

Most of the answers to the few questions that Eda shot her way came in the form of nods or shakes of the head, and maybe a hum. But barely two words outside of that. Eda made sure to keep her questions non-specific, letting Luz answer as much or as little as she wanted to. 

Sometimes there were things that adults just needed to let kids sort out on their own. This was one of those things, Eda could already tell, and she would let Luz handle whatever it was on her own. Unless she asked for help, of course. 

That, and the unfortunate reality was that Valeween was upon them come tomorrow. They really didn’t have the time for a whole ‘emotional arc’ right now. And she doubted Luz would want to anyway. 

“Dinner’ll be ready in a few.” She informed her student. “You want it now, or should I stasis it for you? Er, thumbs up for now, down for later.” She got her answer a few seconds later. Thumbs down. “Gotcha. I’ll leave it on the side for you. Get it whenever you’re ready for it.” 

“...Thanks, Eda.” Luz nodded. 

“You know where everything is. Just… Come grab it when you need it, okay?” 

Once more, Luz nodded, thankful that Eda didn’t make any effort to pry, so that she didn’t need to put any effort into pretending things were fine. 

With that, she made her way up the stairs, and to her room. As soon as she saw her bed, she all but collapsed at the side of it, and let her torso sprawl out over the side of the bed. Her hands gripped the duvet, and it took just about all of Luz’s self restraint to not scream into the void then and there. 

_ Luz had screwed up. _ Big time. And she was acutely, oh-so-very aware of just how badly she had screwed up. 

Initially, she had actually been angry at Amity - Like, legitimate, self-righteous anger fuelled her for probably the first time in her life. Because she didn’t know where… All of that had come from. It felt like it had come out of nowhere, out of a day that had seemed to be going so well. 

Like she had been attacked for no good reason by her friend. 

And it hurt. How Amity had spoken to her, the things that she had said… It all hurt. And the natural response to that was supposed to be anger. 

Part of Luz wanted to be angry - Anger would have been easier to deal with. It would have been easier for her to imagine that Amity had gone off on her the way that she had for no reason whatsoever. She hadn’t done anything to warrant the way Amity had spoken to her!...

...She thought. 

But Amity, she… She didn’t act like that without a reason. Amity didn’t just lash out for no reason. Sometimes the reasons were good, and sometimes the reasons only made sense to her, but she didn’t lash out just because it felt good to. She wasn’t like that for the sake of being like that. Something had upset her. 

And the more Luz thought about it, replaying the interaction in her mind, the more she focused on how she herself had acted. 

She had been the one to yell first. She had been the one to push things. She had been the one who pried. 

Here she was, thankful that Eda hadn’t pried into her business because she didn’t want to get into what was wrong with her, but she hadn’t been able to do that for Amity? There was a word for that - It was hypocrite. 

She was a hypocrite. 

It was hard to figure out why she had felt like she had needed to push things the way that she had, why she had been so… Intent on getting Amity to explain things to her. She didn’t fully understand it herself. It was… 

Amity had just been able to share the truth about her last Valeween. Such a trauma that had affected her, and still clearly affected her up until today. She had trusted Luz with that information, and her trust wasn’t poorly placed - Luz would take that to her grave if Amity wanted her to. And in her head, what was so important that Amity could trust her with that, but couldn’t trust her with… Whatever else had been bothering her? 

...But what business was it of hers? 

At the end of the day, Amity was right. She didn’t need to explain more than that if she didn’t want to. She didn’t owe Luz that, 

She didn’t owe her anything. 

_ ….It hurt.  _

That was the real reason. Removing all the layers of justification, all the post-hoc arguments Luz could think of for either herself or for Amity, all… Everything else, that was what it came down to. 

It hurt Luz to feel like there was something that big, something that important, that Amity didn’t think she could trust with her. Wouldn’t trust with her. Didn’t want to trust with her. 

Luz had thought that they had reached a point where there wasn’t anything that they couldn’t trust with one another. The fact she was wrong hurt. 

Everything that had come from that fight…. It hurt. 

It hurt.... Way, way more than she had expected it to. 

Way more. 

_ Why? _

_ Why did it hurt this much?  _

_ Why did she always screw up like this with people she cared about?  _

...She wanted to see Amity. To apologize to her. To explain that she understood that she’d screwed up. She…

...She just wanted to see Amity. 

Even after they had just had a fight.

How did  _ that  _ make any sense?

Her Scroll buzzed suddenly. She recognized the chime it let out too - A message. 

Luz considered just ignoring it in its entirety. She couldn’t have possibly been less motivated or interested in whatever someone was messaging her about right now, of all times. 

But what if it was Amity?

What if maybe she wanted to talk? Figure things out?... Or, tell her she didn’t want to see her again. That was also a distinct… Horrifying possibility. 

Still though, the thought that maybe it was Amity spurred Luz to reach for her Scroll and open it up - If it was Amity, then whatever it was, she needed to know, now. She felt her heart rise a bit. 

It wasn’t Amity. It was Willow. 

Luz’s heart sank again. On the plus side, Amity wasn’t telling her she wanted nothing more to do with Luz, but the downside was that it wasn’t Amity at all. For a half second, she genuinely considered just closing the scroll and ignoring the message altogether, until she actually read it. 

‘ _ How did it go?’ _

Her eyebrow raised. Had she sent this to the wrong person? What was she even talking about? 

_ ‘Er, did you mean to send this to me?’ _ She messaged back. A reply came just a few seconds later. 

_ ‘Yep!’  _

_ ‘Then I dunno what you’re talking about.’  _

_ ‘I mean you and Amity, after you left the clearing.’  _

Luz’s eyebrow raised again. Why was Willow asking about  _ that? _ She made it sound like she and Amity had never spent any time alone together before, like this was something special or noteworthy. 

Well, unless she considered a fight special. In which case she was right on the money. 

For a solid minute, Luz just stared at her Scroll, wondering what to say in response. Did she lie, and tell her that everything was fine? Pretend that nothing had happened?...

...No, that wouldn’t work. Willow would immediately figure it out the second Amity and Luz started acting weird around one another once Valeween was over. And Willow was habitually honest, and valued that in others. She wouldn’t take being lied to well, and the last thing Luz wanted to do was upset more of her friends because she was being selfish. 

She groaned. She wished she hadn’t replied at all. 

_ ‘We had a fight. _ ’ She sent the message. Then a few seconds later, she sent another. _ ‘I don’t wanna talk about it.’  _

The second she sent that message though, her Scroll lit up again - Willow was calling her. 

Again, Luz groaned. She  _ really, really _ wished she had ignored the message. She couldn’t just ignore the call now, or Willow would end up more worried than she needed to be. Reluctantly, she pressed ‘Accept’, and Willow’s face came into view.

Her expression was a mixture of the aforementioned worry that Luz had already known would be there.  _ “Are you alright?” _ She immediately asked.  _ “You look… Exhausted.”  _

“I am exhausted.” Luz said, pointedly avoiding answering if she was okay. 

_ “And are you alright?” _ Willow repeated. So much for that. 

“...No.” Luz admitted. “I’m… Not.” She was tired, she was upset, and she felt horrible about how she’d acted. She felt guilty, and almost felt like she was going to throw up, even though she’d barely eaten anything all day. 

She was by no stretch of the word ‘alright’. 

_ “What happened?”  _

“I… I really don’t wanna talk about it, Willow - “

_ “Luz, please. This is important.”  _

The Human raised her eyebrow. “Why? What’s going on?” 

_ “Be…. Because I wanna help if I can. Like you did with me and Amity.”  _

“...I don’t suppose you’re going to take no for an answer?” 

_ “Nope! I’m pulling a Luz here.”  _

Normally, Luz would have laughed at that. If the situation were different in that Willow knew what had happened, Luz might have called that joke cruel. 

Regardless though, it was either tell Willow now, or tell Willow tomorrow or the day after, all while running the risk of other people overhearing - When she wanted to be, Willow could be stubborn and the Human was positive she would be quite capable of ‘Pulling a Luz’ for days at a time if need be, and Luz preferred to keep the number of people as low as possible. 

So she explained what had happened to Willow. At first, only briefly, and then in more detail at Willow’s request. She told her everything that happened once Amity approached her, what she and Amity had said to one another, where they went, and about their fight. The Witch just listened, and let Luz talk without interruption. Occasionally, she would nod her head, and by the time Luz was done, she looked deflated. Like she had been expecting to hear something else. 

She didn’t even say anything after Luz finished speaking. After about a five second tap, she just let out a long, heavy sigh. 

Eventually, Luz couldn’t handle the silence anymore. “I know, I know. I really screwed this up, didn’t I?” 

_ “Not intentionally.” _ Willow shook her head.  _ “But… I think you could have handled that better.”  _

“I didn’t mean to screw up this bad.” Luz muttered, mostly into her own pillow at this point. “...Do you think she hates me now?” 

_ “I seriously doubt it.” _ Willow's answer to that was practically immediate.  _ “Amity thinks the world of you, you know. I’ve never heard her say a bad word about you. Er, not since me and her patched things up, at least. I think she just needs some time to figure things out. Maybe… Maybe Valeween is getting to her.”  _

“...I wanna see her.” Luz admitted, repeating her earlier thought, but aloud. “Isn’t that weird? All that just happened and I want to see her.” 

Willow just looked back at Luz for a few seconds, and shook her head.  _ “No. It’s not weird.”  _

“...What if I messaged her?” 

_ “I wouldn’t. You know Amity. She needs time to figure this out herself, and I don’t think messaging her right now is a good idea.”  _

Of course, Willow was right. When something like this happened, Amity would often need time to herself to figure things out before she approached anyone. It made sense, but it did nothing to ease Luz’s mind. 

Tomorrow was Valeween. What were they supposed to do? 

_ “What a mess.” _ Willow sighed. She seemed to understand the situation about as well as Luz did.  _ “We’ll… We’ll figure it out Luz. I promise. But tomorrow is Valeween. And we were relying on Amity to make up for areas the rest of us are weak in.” _

“... Right.” Luz nodded. Valeween was the more immediate issue. She couldn’t do anything about Amity right now, though she occupied the Human's thoughts far more. “I… I’ll see if I can find anything here. Maybe I can find something like a golf club or something in the old junk piles Eda brought from Earth.”

Willow didn’t question what the heck a golf club was supposed to be. She didn’t say anything, in fact. There was a brief pause between the two of them, neither knowing what to say to the other. This had all happened at the absolute worst time.

“...It hurts.” Luz said, without thinking or realizing that she was saying it at all. Her hands clasped over her lips when she realized that she had said that out loud. 

“...Amity means a lot to you, doesn’t she?” Willow said with a gentle smile.

For some reason, that question surprised Luz. Amity was one of her friends - One of the closest friends she’d ever had. When she was upset, Luz was upset. If she ever needed anything, all she needed to do was ask, and Luz would immediately be ready to run over and help her out. In anything. 

It hit differently when actually asked out loud though, in a way Luz wasn’t entirely certain about. It made her pause. Of course she meant a lot to Luz. All her friends meant a lot to her. 

...But Amity mattered in a different way. A more… Luz didn’t know how to describe it. She’d do anything for any of her friends, she’d go that extra mile for any of them.

_ When it came to Amity though, she would go that extra extra mile.  _

The words didn’t do it justice. Luz didn’t have them. All she could do was look at Willow. But Willow got the message. 

“...We’ll figure it out Luz. I promise.”

“...Thanks.” 

Once more, Willow smiled, trying her best to be reassuring, even now. “You should get some sleep. Tomorrow is gonna be a long day.” 

Luz nodded. “...Right.” 

The call ended. And Luz went straight to her saved photos on her Scroll. She found ones with her and Amity in them. She didn’t know why. She just wanted to see them. 

_ She wanted to see Amity. _

* * *

_ Stupid!  _

_ Stupid, stupid, stupid!  _

Amity cursed herself, over and over again. Her hands gripped at bundles of her hair as tightly as she was capable of doing so. She didn’t even notice any pain from the action. Her eyes were sore from the tears that spilled from them, but she didn’t bother to wipe them. They would only be waterlogged within minutes anyway. What would be the point? 

Instead, she just kept cursing herself. 

_ Stupid!  _

There was nothing else she could even begin to think about doing. Every other thought was a whisper in her mind. It just repeated the word over and over again in her head. Because it was true - She was such an _idiot!_

_ It hadn’t been supposed to go like that.  _

For just a moment, she stopped, and took a glimpse at the wall besides her bed. The corkboard full of the pictures that she had accumulated throughout the last six months stared back at her. The visual display of all the friendships that she had managed to make. What she wanted to preserve, more than anything else in the world. 

Now it felt like it was taunting her. Like it knew how badly she had screwed everything up. Because she was the same person she had always been. Because nothing had changed, and it knew it. 

And she knew it too. 

Today was supposed to be different - It was supposed to be so different. She had wanted to confess! She had been going to confess! These feelings, this fear - She was supposed to have answers to them by now! She just needed to say it - And she…! 

...She couldn’t do it. 

Her grip on her hair tightened again. 

The moment had presented itself. It had presented itself after they left the training clearing. It had presented itself as they made their way to the Ved’ma temple. It had presented itself while they were at the Ved’ma temple, and it had presented itself after they left the Ved’ma temple. She had had every opportunity conceivable since they left the clearing to tell Luz the truth, to get ahead of the Cherubim and ahead of Valeween, and finally put these feelings to rest.

To say it on her terms. To get a conclusion on them. To… To settle things. Even if it hadn’t been the answers she wanted, she could have at the very least put her mind to ease. Not a pleasant thought, but at least it would have been something! 

But she… She couldn’t. 

Not after she learned Luz wanted to go back to the Human Realm. 

She… She just _ couldn’t.  _

She couldn’t... 

It felt… So empty. So hollow. Of course Luz still wanted to go back to Earth - Of course she did. That made perfect sense. It was still her home Realm. There had to be a thousand things that she missed about her world, things that she hadn’t even mentioned to Amity before. In spite of everything that she had told Amity, about the people there and how they treated her, and how hard she found it to fit in there, in spite of all the struggles and problems that she faced there, in spite of… Everything. 

The Human Realm was still her home. And to be cut off from it, without any way to return… A part of Amity forgot that Luz wasn’t here because she wanted to be here anymore. She was trapped in the Demon Realm. 

And Luz was the sort of person to make the most out of a bad situation - How many times had Amity seen Luz do that while she had been here? How many times had she seen Luz be ever the optimist, even when things were bleak and depressing? How many times had she seen Luz push to make a bad situation better? 

What had made Amity think that her being stuck on the Isles was different, somehow? 

To Amity, Luz was a part of her world now. A part that wanted to leave. A part that was so important to her, that had come to be so precious to her, that to imagine the Isles without her was just… 

She didn’t… She couldn’t… 

_...It terrified her.  _

And she lashed out at Luz. Yelled at her. Took it out on her. Pushed her away, as if it was her fault. But it wasn’t. The anger that Amity had directed at Luz hadn’t been because of Luz at all. 

It was anger Amity felt towards herself. Because she was angry at herself. 

For being such a selfish coward. 

Because that was all this was. 

Amity was a coward. She was a selfish person, so concerned with what she wanted and was afraid of that she let it all out against Luz, when she hadn’t done a damned thing wrong, hadn’t done anything even close to wrong. Even then, when she was being barraged with a flurry of unwarranted fury directed at her, she was trying to offer help to her friend. Because Luz wasn’t afraid. 

Luz was everything that Amity wished she was… But knew she couldn’t be. 

Just hours before, Willow had said that she had changed. Tears filled Amity’s eyes again. 

_ No, she hadn’t. _

She hadn’t changed a bit. She was still the same, selfish coward that she had been long before now. She was just better at dressing it up. That was all. 

And now she’d pushed Luz away. For no good reason. 

She buried her face into her pillow, pulled at her hair again, and cursed at herself again. 

_ Idiot. _

* * *

Valeween Day. 

It was weird to wake up realizing that it was today. Luz somehow had managed to fall asleep, against all odds. She woke up groggy and still tired, but she had at least woken up at a reasonable time. 

The first thing she did was check her Scroll. No new messages. No missed calls. Nothing to indicate that Amity had tried to get in touch with her. She sighed.  _ Damn it.  _

Breakfast for today was the dinner that she never had last night. In truth, she still had little appetite, but she made herself eat. She wasn’t about to let anyone else down by having no energy today. 

She ran into Lilith before Eda that particular morning - Lilith had been rushing between the Owl House and Bonesbrough, helping the townsfolk set up various defences that she had learned to set up from her time in the Emperor’s Coven. For a moment, Luz considered asking her for advice regarding Amity, but she decided against it. Amity had told her they weren’t especially close, even though she had one been one of Lilith's top proteges. Somehow Luz doubted she’d be able to get much from her. 

Eda showed up not much later, and was able to recognize that Luz was still upset. But she still didn’t pry. 

“Morning, kid.” She said, taking a seat opposite her student. 

“Hey, Eda.” Luz nodded, taking another bite of her food. 

“...Still don’t wanna talk about it?” 

“...Not really.” 

“Alright.” The Witch nodded. “You know you can talk to me though, right?” 

“I know.” 

“Okay.” 

And that was that. Again, Luz was grateful for the space her mentor was giving her. It made handling things so much easier. Let her figure things out in her own head first. 

The last thing she wanted was to sound like an idiot on top of feeling like one. 

"Thank you." She whispered, just loud enough that Eda could hear it. 

Her mentor nodded. “In any case.” Eda rocked back in her seat, placed her hands behind her head, and held it in place. “I don’t think you’ll have to worry about any Cherubim or anything like that. This place is practically a fortress.” 

“I’m not gonna be staying in here.” Luz replied, simply. 

“Aha!” For a second, it sounded like Lilith had been waiting for  _ days  _ to hear that from the Human. “I’m glad your student has more sense than you, Edalyn.” 

“Ugh.” Eda groaned. “Lilith, for the last time, I’m not going to Bonesbrough.” 

“Don’t you have any sense of civic duty?!” Lilith questioned, her voice conveying appaul at the Owl Lady’s refusal. 

“Sure I do.” Countered Eda. “Just not for the Emperor’s sake. First of all, I’m one of the most wanted criminals on the Isles. Second of all, I hate the Emperor, his Coven and his little regime, and I’m not doing their jobs for them only for them to arrest me the minute they show up back in town.” 

“So you’d just leave the people of Bonesbrough to fend for themselves?!” 

“Hey, I’ve already taken a hit to my ability to buy food and still house the rest of you freeloaders once this invasion is over! Who d’you think has been providing all the sensory enhancement, anti-sleep, high energy, and power boosting potions to the rest of that place?” 

“There’re anti-sleeping potions?” Luz muttered, blinking at the idea. “What, do they just, like, keep you awake?” 

“Real good if you ever need to cram for an exam, kid.” Eda winked. She then turned to Lilith again. “The point being, I’ve already done my civic duty, even at a personal cost! I’m not risking getting thrown into the Conformitorium on top of that. You’ve seen all the defences anyway - They’ll be fine.” 

Lilith groaned. “You know that’s not the point - Even if I accepted that, if you were to stay here, and if the Cherubim get in, there won’t be anyone to help  _ you!” _

“I’d still be here!  _ Hoot!” _ Hooty swung the door open and added his two cents. 

“Do you know Healing Magic?” Lilith asked, not looking back at the House Demon.

“...No?” 

“I rest my case.” 

“There would be if you both stayed here.” Eda pointed out. She then stood up, and threw her hands out wide. “Besides - I’m the most powerful Witch in the Boiling Isles!” 

“Used to be.” Lilith flatly said. “You still struggle with certain Glyphs.” Eda growled, but Lilith carried on. “And not even the most powerful Witches have been able to withstand a Cherubim invasion on their own, and the three of us are all working at a disadvantage anyway.” 

“I still have Owlbert to help me cast spells. I’ve handled Valeween on my own before, and I’ll handle it on my own again!” 

_ “Well - “ _ Luz said, taking the final bite of her food, and standing up herself. “I’m going into town to help Gus and Willow and the rest of Bonesbrough. I don’t know  _ what _ I’ll do without my super strong and awesome mentor there to protect me, but I’ll manage! Like I managed with that Craggosaur last month!” For the first time since last night, she allowed herself to smirk. 

She had Eda and she knew it. 

Eda paused for a few moments. Her arms fell back by her sides, and she groaned in that way that she did when she knew she had been outsmarted. “...Damn you and your ability to tug at my maternal instincts.” She rolled her eyes, and then threw her hands up into the air. “Alright, alright, fine, you win, kid.” 

“So you’re coming with us?” Lilith asked, her eyes getting bigger in that way they did when she was hopeful. 

“How could I refuse after all you’ve both done to guilt-trip me.” 

“Hey, hold on a second!” Hooty called out again. “What am I supposed to do on my own?  _ Hoot! Hoot!”  _

“Cherubim go after people who have secrets mostly, right?” Eda pointed out, her eyes half closed as she addressed the House Demon. “Well, we can’t get you to shut up, so I seriously doubt you have any secrets. Plus, all the defences we’ve set up around this place will keep you safe anyway. Also, King will be staying with you, so you’re not going to be alone.” 

“Hey!” From the other room, and apparently only now deciding to join in on this conversation, King scampered into the room, and climbed onto the table in front of Luz. “Why am I staying here?! What am I gonna do if the Cherubim do break in?!” 

“The Cherubim don’t attack Demons, genius.” Eda reminded him. “There's another reason you’ll be fine here, Hooty.” 

“Oh. Okay!  _ Hoot!” _ Hooty acknowledged, before slamming the door shut

“I’m inclined to agree with Edalyn.” Lilith commented to King. “The less things we have to keep track of, the easier it will be to handle whatever Cherubim comes our way.” 

Luz blinked, remembering yesterday's call with Willow. “Hey, Eda, speaking of things to keep track of, do you still have any old Earth junk laying around?” 

“I got a ton of it in the back. Why?” 

“I was hoping I could find something like a weapon to use.” 

“Go knock yourself out.” Eda shrugged, gesturing to the back room as she spoke. “You’ve probably got a better idea of what a weapon from your world would look like than I would.”

* * *

It didn’t take too long for Luz to find something that she could call a weapon - A red, metal baseball bat. It was probably a throwaway item from a team in Luz’s hometown, or someone’s old personal piece. Either way, it was now going to be of good use to her. 

The rest of the morning, and a large chunk of the afternoon was dedicated to Luz drawing Glyph after Glyph, making sure that she had more than enough to be able to last the night. Her pockets and bag were both stuffed with Glyphs, and she memorized how much of each she had in each pocket. 

Her cape also came out for the occasion - She threw it on, and then in a moment of vanity, opted to check herself out in the mirror. She almost looked like a vigilante from the old superhero comic books. 

A large portion of the day though, she spent outside, drawing and drawing, and watching her Scroll for any new activity. Occasionally, she would get an alert, and she’d reach out and grab it instantly, but she would sigh in disappointment when it was either Gus or Willow, making last minute checks and plans for where they were going to meet. 

Luz’s heart sank when she realized Amity had left the group chat for Valeween preparations. 

Gus questioned it, but Willow mercifully handled it. Luz really didn’t want to deal with that right now. Her mind was focused mostly on Amity as she drew each Glyph. Where she was. What she was doing. 

How she wanted to see her. 

If she could see Amity right now, what would she say? 

That she was sorry. That she didn’t mean to push like she had. That she didn’t have any excuse for it, or any good reason. That she…. Understood why Amity was so upset with her. 

That she hoped they were still friends. 

...That she had been removed from her life for one day, and she was miserable. 

Willow had been right. Amity meant a lot to her. 

Far, far more than she had realized, it turned out. 

She sighed. What was wrong with her? 

Why couldn’t she remove Amity from her mind, even for just a moment? She needed to be able to focus on what was going to happen throughout the day. She was going to need to focus on the Cherubim. She was going to need to focus - 

….Focus on the plant life around her. Like the Vampire Pumpkin just a few feet away. 

And how it had a collection of nine blue eyes. 

And how when she looked around, the grass, the bushes, the trees, they all now had eyes. 

All of which were staring directly at her. 

Immediately, Luz scanned the area - Everywhere she looked, more and more blades of grass and tree leaves and everything else turned grey just three days ago had eyes that were now opening up and focusing on the Human girl in front of them. Luz’s heart began to beat harder. That on its own was unsettling enough - To put it mildly. To put it bluntly, it was downright disconcerting and horrifying, and Luz could swear to God she was starting to come down with trypophobia just by looking at all of them. 

But she knew what it all meant. 

“Er, Eda?! Lilith?!” She yelled back to the house. “It’s starting!” 

Only a few seconds passed before both the Witches burst out of the building, staffs and equipment in hand. Instantly, they recognized the situation. 

“It’s early.” Lilith stated, quietly. “It doesn’t normally start this early. I thought we’d have another hour at least.” 

“Okay, change of plans!” Eda announced. “You got everything Luz?” 

“I - I think so!” 

“Lilith?”

“I have everything I need!” 

“Okay! We’re heading into town right now! Hooty, King, lock the doors, bar the windows, watch the house, and kick out any Cherubim that gets in!!” 

“Will do!  _ Hoot!” _

“You can count on us!” 

With that, Luz, Eda, and Lilith made a mad dash down the pathway, as all around them, the eyes and plants began to twist and turn and crane their way up towards the skies, slowly, and creakily, the sounds as they did so almost mimicking the cracking of bones. Stiffly. Short, sudden movements, that then stopped in place, and then repeated until they were staring upwards to the skies. Tree branches broke, and stems twisted. 

The eyes glowed. 

And from them, all at the same time, from all over the Isles, simultaneous beams of blue light shot up into the skies. 

All coalescing on one single point. They collided, and sparked together in one place for just a short while. 

And then the sky tore open, creating a tear in the open air, like a lightning bolt that hung in place, jagged edges and all. Red and black spiralling, and the clouds in the sky orbiting it like a planet would orbit a star. 

From that, hundreds of thousands of tiny dots began to fall from the sky. All descending onto various towns and cities scattered across the Isles. An uncomfortable number headed right towards Bonesbrough. 

Even without seeing one up close, Luz knew exactly what they were. 

The Cherubim had arrived. 

Valeween had begun. 

* * *

**WELP - There we go. Valeween has begun. Happy Halloween ya’ll!**

**So, I’ll be slowing down updates for this - It’s mostly because I have Uni Work I need to be getting done and I’m slightly exhausted - I’ll try to keep the updates fairly regular though! We’re not quite done yet : D**

**To be Luz and Amity is to suffer : D**

**I hope this was a good chapter - It’s a bit shorter but I’m honestly pretty happy with it myself.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELP - There we go. Valeween has begun. Happy Halloween ya’ll! 
> 
> So, I’ll be slowing down updates for this - It’s mostly because I have Uni Work I need to be getting done and I’m slightly exhausted - I’ll try to keep the updates fairly regular though! We’re not quite done yet : D
> 
> To be Luz and Amity is to suffer : D 
> 
> I hope this was a good chapter - It’s a bit shorter but I’m honestly pretty happy with it myself.


	7. Allies

**“After a Cherubim has fed on the blue goo it extracts from a Witch, it will be able to mutate into its ‘Adult form - While in this form, they are far more dangerous, and could very easily kill a Witch if it is not dealt with immediately. They are exceptionally harder to deal with than immature Cherubim, and whatever efforts are necessary should be taken to prevent a Cherubim from reaching maturity. Fortunately, there have only been a few recorded incidents of death relating from an ‘Adult’ Cherubim.”** **  
** **\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 6, page 59**

The closest thing that Luz could compare the Cherubim arrival to was that of a swarm of locus. 

Just far larger. In both number and in size.

Entire sections of sky were blocked out, with little snippets of the sky peeking through small gaps between the blotches. They fell into the Demon Realm rapidly, some not even bothering to open their wings up to fly. She could hear some of them smacking into plants and the ground, almost mindlessly as they descended on the Isles, and the flapping of their wings from the ones above was practically everywhere - A surreal mixture of what Luz imagined an angel's wings might sound like, and the buzzing of what she knew an insects’ sounded like.

Like being surrounded by hornets.

Just the sound alone was unsettling - When Luz dared to glance back over her shoulder, the sheer scale of what was around her made her shudder to her core - Just how many thousands were directly over her head, only ignoring her because she was one of thousands of Boiling Isles residents, and the Cherubim above were still deciding which ones they were going to attack first. 

Maybe calling it an alien invasion would have been a more accurate comparison. 

“Keep it up, you two!” Lilith yelled from ahead of the Owl Lady and her apprentice. Lilith was used to situations like this from her time in the Emperor's Coven, and was calling upon her training and experience now, it seemed. 

Something about that was reassuring. 

Luz, Eda and Lilith all ran, as fast as they were able to run, aiming straight for the perimeter set up around Bonesbrough. They couldn’t use Staffs to fly, or they would become immediate targets for the Cherubim to hone in on them, wouldn’t be able to use them to quickly use Magic, and would have absolutely no cover if they were up in the air. 

At least on the ground, they could duck underneath trees and shrubbery if needed. 

For all the good it would realistically do - All of the plant life was still covered in eyes. Now that the Cherubim Gate was open, they were looking all around the place, keeping a firm eye on anyone who came into their field of view, creaking, snapping, and clicking with each new position. Luz did everything she could to ignore that little bit of cosmic horror, gripped on tighter to her baseball bat, and focused on just keeping up her running speed. 

_ They just had to get to Bonesbrough. That was all they had to do. That was what she focused on. _

Whatever was supposed to come next wouldn’t matter if they couldn’t get to Bonesbrough at least!

_ One step at a time.  _

Eventually, one group of Cherubim decided that the three Witches would make a good target, separated as they were from the rest of society, and swooped down towards them at a rapid speed. Wings outstretched, and wide, toothy grins displayed, they shot towards the group like a squad of dive-bombers. 

Eda noticed it first. “Above us!” She yelled out, and used her staff to cast a Fireball Spell at the incoming batch. Her shot missed, but it told the rest of the group where the Cherubim were. 

Lilith skidded to a halt, but Luz kept running - Both had been done on instinct, and by the time Luz realised her mistake and came to a halt of her own, it was too late to correct it and double back. 

The Cherubim shot right between Luz and the two older Witches, and then positioned themselves between them, cutting them into two groups. The majority focused on the two Witches, seeing them as the bigger threat, while only one opted to focus on Luz. 

And Luz focused right back on it. It was the first Cherubim she had seen in person. She took notes. 

It wasn’t all that dissimilar to the pictures that had been shown in the Valeween for Witchlings book Luz had been reading - An insect-like creature that had a distorted hourglass figure making up the framework of its body, with the bottom side being far wider and bulkier than the topside. A series of layers could be seen, the outermost at the bottom, and the innermost at the top, which looked something like petals, and what looked like little hands were poking out of the top of the bottom layer. Layered frills covered the underside, and the head and ‘face’ was covered in fur, which covered where the eyes on a Human or Witch’s face would be. A multi-layered, splitting off, sporadic horn at the centre of the forehead divided the fur, and the wings, yellowish-orange in their colour, fluttered at the speed a wasp’s would behind the creature, granting it flight, and generating noise. 

They almost looked like a kind of sentient flower bud, now that Luz got a close look at it.

Speaking purely aesthetically, it was still sort of cute, in Luz’s mind - In that weird, disgusting way some insects could be cute. 

The most expressive part of the Cherubim was easily it’s mouth - It seemed to be really the only thing that the creatures had to convey any emotion at all. Luz already knew that behind its… Lips? Skin? Whatever it was that covered them, behind it, were a row of sharpened teeth. Normally, from the images Luz had seen of them, they were bare, showing a toothy grin - The rest of this one’s group had worn the exact same grin, and this one had been too, just a few seconds later. 

Now though, it was more akin to a closed pout of confusion.

Luz could have sworn that she heard her mentor, but she couldn’t focus on what she was saying, her attention so firmly focused on the Cherubim in front of her, expecting it to move, as though they were in a standoff. The Cherubim that were focusing on Lilith and Eda had immediately engaged them in combat, but the one in front of Luz hovered for just a moment, seemingly confused as to what to do with Luz - Luz was a Human, after all. Cherubim didn’t have any sort of understanding of what to do when it came to a Human, or what a Human was, Luz realized. 

For a second, she thought that maybe the Cherubim wouldn’t even bother with her - Her anatomy was already different from that of a Witch. Maybe the difference would be great enough that the Cherubim decided she wasn’t worth it. 

_ Would she even have blue goop for it to feed from? _

In the next second though, with sounds not unlike the snapping of bones, the mouth of the Cherubim cracked and creaked like the plants around it, and opened wide - Revealing its huge, bulging blue eye behind its teeth. 

_ That,  _ Luz hadn’t seen in any of the pictures. She’d read about it, but seeing it in person was  _ downright.  _

_ Horrifying.  _

_ Definitely not cute anymore. _

It looked right at Luz. Somehow, she could tell it was fuelled by contemptuous glee. 

A blue glow followed, and from the eye, a ray of light shot out towards Luz at speed. 

_ The Cherubim Ray.  _

Whatever Luz was to the Cherubim, it seemed to have decided that she was as much a target as anyone else was. 

Jumping to the left, Luz managed to narrowly avoid the beam, and felt herself grip hold of her baseball bat firmer. The Cherubim wasn’t hesitating anymore, which meant that she had to move quickly too - She had to remember what she had learned over the last couple of days of training with her friends. 

_ To be quick, to be precise, and to not hold back.  _

As soon as she landed after her initial jump, she charged straight for the Cherubim, and wound up her arm and bat behind her head. Another glow of light began to form behind the jagged teeth of the invader. 

Too late - Luz pitched, and slammed the metallic bat right into the eye of the creature, smashing it into nothing but a cloud of smoke. The creature was completely destroyed with but a single swing. 

It had been remarkably easy, Luz noted. There had been a resistance, but nothing that she wasn’t strong enough to push through. Like hitting through styrofoam. 

So individually, the Cherubim weren’t too tough, like everyone had been telling her - It was the sheer numbers of the Cherubim that would be the issue. 

“Nice one, kid!” Eda called out, grin on her face, as she slammed her Staff through the body of a Cherubim herself, before using its Magic to freeze another one just in front of her. Between her and Lilith, they had to have taken at least ten of them down without breaking a sweat - They weren’t a huge challenge to skilled Witches like them, and right now, they were in manageable numbers, and would be for the next hundred or so. 

After that, they were going to need either backup, or a fortress. 

Preferably both. 

“We need to keep moving!” Lilith told her sister and the Human, as she froze the final Cherubim of the group. She tapped the side of it with her foot before she turned to her allies, and began to move in the direction of Bonesbrough again. “That was just a small group. If they come at us in enough numbers, there won’t be anything we can do against them.”

“A dozen or so between us in about fifteen seconds - I don’t know, Lily - I think we can take them!” Eda grinned, but she followed her sister's lead and began to run. Her student followed in suit. 

As they ran, they had at least six more encounters with the Cherubim, more and more seeing them as easy, separated targets. Each group that came near them was quickly beaten, thanks in no small part to the sheer skill that characterized Eda and Lilith, even without full access to their Magic, and needing to rely on their Staffs and Glyphs. Luz managed to get a few Cherubim herself, trying to still get a feel for the baseball bat she held, as well as being aware of, and rationing how many Glyphs she used. 

If she didn’t keep track, she would certainly use them all up before she knew it. That had happened one too many times during various classes at Hexside for Luz to discount the possibility. 

It didn’t take them too long to actually get to the outskirts of Bonesbrough, and the sight of it reminded Luz of zombie movies. 

Bar a few narrow exceptions, the palisade walls that had been erected around the city were swarming with Cherubim, like they were wasps around a hive. What their purpose was, when they could just fly over the walls, Luz couldn’t even begin to figure out. 

Intimidation maybe? The buzzing noise they made would certainly have that effect, that was for sure - It almost sounded as loud as a plane taking off from the ground! 

_ No one had ever mentioned the sheer noise to Luz before! _

There were a few Witches at the top defensive stations on the wall, using spells and weapons and whatever else was available to them to batter back the almost literal wave of insect-like creatures trying to get over the walls, while others focused on the invasion from the sky - Spells were being cast from what seemed like every point in the city, hitting upwards to strike at swooping overhead invaders.

Luz was starting to quickly realize that there was no one thing that she could compare this to - In reality, it was a horrendous mismash of every kind of end-of-the-world trope she had seen in her life. 

For just a couple of seconds, the three of them were still, all wondering  _ how in the living hell _ they were going to get into the city without being attacked by the Cherubim, or by other Witches mistaking them for Cherubim from a distance

“There!” Lilith suddenly pointed towards one of those few narrow sections that hadn’t been covered in Cherubim. 

A very thin corridor had been established by a few Witches, mostly from the Illusion and Construction Covens, casting all manner of defensive spells, while people from outside the city were trying to file in as quickly as they could - The three of them weren’t the only ones caught off guard by the early arrival of the Cherubim, and naturally, the people of Bonesbrough weren’t just going to leave them out to dry! At least, not without putting in a fight first! 

Only a few people were left, and the Cherubim were still swarming the place - If the Owl House residents were going to get into the city that way, they were going to have to move.

_ Now.  _

“Hop on, Luz!” Eda ordered, already with her Staff ready. Cover wasn’t going to matter if they were stuck outside the walls. The Human readily complied. 

“Stay close to the ground.” Lilith told her sister, readying her Staff as well. “Just focus on getting through as quickly as possible.” 

“I betcha I’ll get there before you do.” 

“Is this really the time for another one of your - “

Without even letting her sister finish, Eda hit the side of her Staff to make it go, and began to shoot off down the hill towards the opening, like a bullet. “See you there, slow stuff!” 

“Edalyn! Hey!” Lilith shouted after her, and followed suit. 

Luz made sure to keep a firm grip onto the Staff - At the speed that Eda was going, if she fell off, she was almost certainly going to break something, and they were so close to the ground that If she just straightened her leg out, she would skim along it. If at all possible, she was very keen to not break any of her bones today!

Halfway down the hill, a flock of the Cherubim decided that the speeding Witches and Human were new targets, and shot straight towards them. Rays were shot at them, and Eda focused on avoiding them as best she could, weaving and skirting around them from whatever direction they came from. Only when a Cherubim was in front of her face - Close enough for her to reach with her bare hands - Did the older woman activate a Glyph, slapping it on the Cherubim directly, and letting whatever Magic Spell the randomly-selected Glyph did engulf the creature. 

For her part, Luz tightened her hold of her baseball bat, and swung at them as they flew in close to her. The speed of her swing, and the speed of Eda’s flying combined, making whatever Cherubim Luz was able to hit turn to dust practically instantly. In the middle of the swarm, it didn’t really amount to much of anything, but it helped Luz feel like she was contributing something to this entire escapade. 

By that point, the Witches that had been guarding the entrance way they were headed for had spotted them, and had created a defensive line around the entrance, with a small gap between them to allow the two incoming Staffs entrance into the city. They were bunkered in behind chest-high walls, which they used as cover whenever a Cherubim shot its rays at them, and would peek over and fire off a Spell between incoming beams. One of the Witches made a gesture with their hand - Telling the incoming Witches to hurry it up, and to get inside. 

Eda began to tilt forward as much as she dared, using her weight to add on what little more speed she could, making a beeline right for the entrance. Luz clung to her mentor, focused solely on the entrance herself, hoping that once on the other side, she’d have a second to breathe.

Neither saw the squad of Cherubim coming in.

The defending Witches noticed it and tried to gesture towards the incoming attackers, and Luz was sure that she heard Lilith yell something but it was too undistinguished, too much a part of the background noise as everything else was that she couldn’t hear it properly. Either way she understood neither. 

She only realized it had been a warning when she felt the Cherubim fly straight into her ribs. 

Both were knocked off the Staff. 

Reacting as quickly as she could, Eda used her Staff to generate a powerful gust of wind, serving two functions - The first being to knock away the Cherubim that were far too close for comfort. The second to cushion her and her students falls. They skidded along the ground, but nothing was broken at the end of it all. 

Eda had managed to keep hold of her Staff, and Luz her baseball bat, though now they were just about fifty meters away from the entrance to Bonesbrough, and were being honed in on by Cherubim. 

There was only really so long that the defending Witches could wait before needing to seal up the entrance way, to protect the city at large. And they couldn’t rely on Lilith picking them up either - She had already shot past them while they were knocked off their Staff, and had reached the city before she even registered what had happened, and now the defending Witches wouldn’t let her go back out for fear of her safety and risk she could bring onto others, in spite of her efforts to push right past them.

So both Eda and Luz picked themselves up, and sprinted towards the entrance way, as quickly as they possibly could. 

The defending Witches and Lilith gave them covering fire - Literally - As they made their way towards the wall. As they got closer, the defending Witches began to file back into the wall, one by one, as they retreated, holding out until the last second they could afford to. Thanks to their efforts, Eda was able to reach the line and get through the entrance without issue. The Witches began to fall back in full, and Luz quickly ran to follow. 

Just before she could get there though, another Cherubim darted, and hovered just in front of her, and crackled its mouth open wide - The things were fast, able to cut off members of groups from the rest, where they were easy to pick off. This one had already gotten ready to fire it’s Cherubim Ray, and Luz didn’t have the time to react. 

She was only saved by the sudden fireball of a Witch that hadn’t hidden behind the wall yet. The fireball struck the back of the Cherubim, causing it to scream, before turning into dust. 

Its body faded away, and Luz’s saviour stood on the other side of the dust. And Luz had to blink again, to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. She wasn’t though.

_ Boscha _ had been the one to save her. 

The two of them stared at one another for just a moment, Luz triple checking that she wasn’t making a mistake here. Of everyone she had expected to save her here, Boscha hadn’t even been on the list. And yet, here she was. 

After the few seconds passed, incoming buzzing noises reminded them  _ exactly  _ where they were.

“Move it!” Boscha yelled at the Human, walking backwards to the entrance, and launching fireball spells behind Luz as she did so to prevent more incoming Cherubim from trying their luck. 

Luz got the message loud and clear, and decided to save her shock for later. She ran past Boscha, and behind the palisade. Boscha followed suit, and as soon as they were on the other side, an elder Witch barricaded the entrance shut, just before a swarm slammed through the entry, but instead collided into the now closed entrance. 

The sounds of the creatures throwing themselves against the walls continued for a short while, but eventually, they gave up, and everyone was able to take a second to breathe. 

They had made it. 

“Hah!” Eda laughed, threw up a rude gesture with her hands, and yelled over the wall, “Nice try, you overgrown nats! Not this time!” 

Backing up until she hit the wall of a house, Luz watched as other Witches made their way to reinforce the barricade that had sealed off the way she had just come in - Plants, rocks, whatever their Magic could conjure up. Why the Cherubim even bothered and didn’t fly over the wall was a mystery to Luz even more than it had been when she was on the outside of the wall - Were they acting on an instinct, were they unaware of the defences on the other side and were holding back because of it? Or were they just unintelligent? Sapient, but unintelligent? 

The Valeween for Witchlings book never really bothered to explain that. Behavioural tendencies of the Cherubim weren’t really understood. Yet the book did claim no matter what tactic the residents of the Isles tried, the Cherubim would always find a way to find them. 

But not figure out they could just fly over a wall and completely overrun the place in an instant?

Somehow Luz didn’t think she’d get an answer, and this would remain a mystery of the Cherubim. 

Either way though, her heart was racing, and her breathing heavy from all the adrenaline, activity, and nerves. 

“Ahem. Excuse me.” A Witch from the Construction Coven spoke up behind Eda as she carried on her gesturing and yelling. To their side, Lilith was stood, clearly making a marked effort to act more restrained than Eda. “You’re the Owl Lady, aren’t you?”

Eda froze her celebratory taunt, turned, and gave the Witch a raised eyebrow. “Depends on who’s asking.” 

“We need someone to help us reinforce the barricades. Your sister has been telling us for days now that you were willing to help us.” 

“Did she now?” Eda asked, raising an eyebrow towards Lilith. Lilith glanced away slightly, and Eda returned to the Construction Coven Witch. “Well, of course I am - Where do you need me?” 

“Follow me, I’ll show you.” The Construction Coven Witch nodded, and began to make their way to where they wanted her. 

Before following though, Eda turned to her sister. “You’ve promised me to them for ‘Days’?” The expression Lilith made confirmed that she had done as much. “So, out of curiosity, what would you have told them if Luz hadn’t convinced me to come along with you?” 

“Appealed to your civic duty… Again?... And asked nicely as your sister?” 

The Owl Lady just stared flatly at Lilith, and then rolled her eyes. She then scanned for Luz. “Kid, stay here for now! Don’t go anywhere, I’ll be back in a while, and we’ll figure out where to go from there.” 

All Luz did was give a thumbs up as Eda followed the Construction Coven Witch. 

Sliding down against the house wall and onto the ground to rest her legs for just a second, Luz took a glance around the inside of the town. It reminded her of movies that showed Vikings and medieval warriors, or fantasy worlds based around those things, moving to defend a fort or castle against an incoming army. People moving back and forth between different positions, keeping an eye on the skies and firing off spells whenever a Cherubim got too close. Some sort of casting had been applied on the inside of the walls, making the noise of the Cherubim’s wings less deafening. The needed supplies were moved under guard in case of aerial attack, and a little tent had been set up not too far from where she was resting, for what Luz assumed would be the people who were affected by the Cherubim Rays, or had other injuries. 

Hopefully it wouldn’t become a casualty tent. 

“Eyes.” Boscha suddenly approached and said, firmly, kneeling down in front of Luz so they were eye level. “I want to make sure you didn’t get hit.” She clarified. Her expression was fairly intense, like she was getting ready to cast a spell if Luz didn’t pass this check-up. 

“Don’t eyes only glow blue if the Rays are making me say something I’m keeping secret or... Just wouldn’t say, or something?” Luz asked, though she obliged and made eye contact with Boscha anyway. “I dunno exactly how it works but if I got hit, wouldn’t I be telling you… Exactly what I think of you by now?” 

“Depends how good you are at resisting them. You’re a Human. It could affect you differently. Besides, if you’ve got a better way of figuring out if people are infected, I’d love to hear it.” Boscha flatly responded. A few seconds later, she broke eye contact, and got back onto her feet. “You’re fine.” 

“...Thanks.” Luz muttered. She wasn’t much of a fan of Boscha, but credit where it was due, without Boscha, she would have already been under the influence of the Cherubim Ray by now, and who knew what that would look like. “You saved me back there.” 

“What, did you think I’d just leave you out there?” Boscha asked, equally as flatly as before. 

A few seconds passed in silence. Honestly, Luz hadn’t considered it before, but she wouldn’t have put it past her until just now. 

It wasn’t like they were anything even approximating friends, or that Boscha had been beyond doing horrible things to her and her group of friends before. Boscha had been a bully. She backed off months ago, but that didn’t mean they were on good terms, or that Boscha wasn’t still a bully. 

Maybe that was uncharitable though - There was a difference between being like that, and being willing to let someone  _ literally die _ , after all. 

The silence seemed to serve as an answer for Boscha. Her arms folded, and her face turned into a scowl. “I’m a bitch, not a fucking monster. I’m not leaving you out there to just get mauled to death by those buggy pests.” 

A conviction characterized her sentence in a way that Luz didn’t remember hearing her speak in before. Only Grudgby invoked anything similar within her. The difference being that Grudgby wasn’t typically this intense. Apparently Boscha held some pretty strong civic convictions on top of that, Luz could only guess. 

“...Well, thank you.” Luz repeated, getting onto her feet. She allowed herself to smile, even if it was just a small one. “I owe you one.” 

Boscha turned her face on its side to Luz. Her expression became hidden to the Human. “...Don’t mention it. You don’t need to thank me for doing the absolute minimum on Valeween.” 

“Truce?” Luz held her hand out for Boscha to shake. “At least for tonight?” 

The Grudgby Captain looked at the hand for a second, eyebrows raised, then at the Human. Then accepted, and shook Luz’s hand. “Truce.” She agreed. 

“Great!” The Human nodded, and then opted to take a look around the area. People were starting to move, arming themselves with whatever was to hand. New faces were arriving in a hurry, and taking up assigned positions. “So, er… What’s been going on here? I thought people would be more… Prepared for this.” 

After days of constant movement, constant preparation, and constant training, practice, and honing of skills and fortifying of defences, Luz had pictured in her head, Bonesbrough and it’s citizens all ready to hold the line the moment that the Cherubim arrived.

Instead, it was a clustered rush, of people running into one another, and dropping things. The stations seemed only sporadically manned, and no one seemed to know where everyone else was. There wasn’t much organisation, or even much of a chain of command. Granted, no one was any kind of military of police force - The only one around had abandoned them for petty ‘security’ reasons. 

But she had somehow imagined more organisation. The drills she had seen people undertake were more organised. Had that all been for nothing? 

Boscha looked over the top of the palisade, and at the Cherubim Gate, and the still pouring out Cherubim. She growled at it, “Normally it would be, but the Gate opened up early - It’s never opened up this early before. Not while I’ve been alive, or my parents have been alive anyway. Bump says the last time Valeween was this early was a hundred years ago.” 

“So, what, we just have once-in-a-lifetime bad luck?” 

“I guess so.” 

Luz groaned.  _ “Great.” _ Of course they did. That about tracked for her record when it came to luck. 

Valeween was, what, an hour early? That had been what Lilith had said back at the Owl House, that it wasn’t supposed to start for another hour at the very least. Just one hour had thrown everything this out of whack? Had just completely thrown everyone’s plans into this even of disarray - 

She then blinked, and looked around once more. 

“Where’re Gus and Willow?” 

“What?” Boscha’s ears twitched. 

“Gus and Willow - Aren’t they here?” 

“I’ve not seen them, why?” 

“I was supposed to be meeting them here so we could stick together! But if everything got thrown off because the Cherubim arrived early - “ 

With everything thrown this off, that meant Gus and Willow could be anywhere in the city, possibly on their own, without anyone to back them up. And that was practically a death sentence if they got hit by any Cherubim. 

Luz didn’t need to even finish her sentence. Boscha seemed to realize it too. She groaned, her forehead falling into her right hand. “Oh, crap.” 

Right now, two of the best friends that Luz had in either this world or the Human world were out there, in the absolute chaos of Valeween, caught unaware by the sudden, early arrival of the creatures. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her Scroll, hoping to see a message from one of the two of them, but saw nothing. No notifications or missed calls. 

And nothing from Amity either, she couldn’t help note. 

She shook that out of her head. She couldn’t think like that right now. All above Bonesbrough, she could see Cherubim sweeping down to attack individuals, and shooting their Cherubim Rays at them. Spells were cast back - It looked like a war zone. She couldn’t get distracted right now. 

Her friends needed her. 

“I’m gonna go look for them.” She declared, getting up onto her feet, suddenly feeling no aching or tiredness within them. “I can’t just leave them out there! I - I have to try and find them!” 

“Where to?” Boscha asked. Luz just looked at her again, confused. “Didn’t we just have this conversation? I’m not leaving people to the mercy of these things! Now, which way are we going, Human?” 

Luz blinked, and shook her head as though it would shake out the surprise. Unique times, unique circumstances, unique allies, she supposed. Loathe as she was to involve Boscha in anything Willow related in particular, it wasn’t like she had much choice. She needed whatever help she could get. “The shortest route to Willow’s house from here is through the marketplace - Maybe she’s still around that area!” 

“I know the shortest paths to the market.” Boscha told her, before breaking into a run. “Follow me!” 

Before she did though, Luz looked back towards the path her mentor had been taken. Perhaps it would have been smarter to wait for her, to get her assistance - But waiting that long could be the difference that was between Willow or Gus getting hospitalised by a Cherubim, and she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself if that happened because of her. 

One friend had already been let down because of Luz. She wasn’t going to let another one down.

She would let Eda know where she was through her Scroll the second she wasn’t at risk of being Cherubim Ray’d, she swore. 

And then she turned, and ran after Boscha. 

**“Aim for the red eye.”** **  
** **\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 6, page 60**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO this was originally supposed to be the first half of a longer chapter, but I figured that to keep the story updated, and because it helps story pacing, I’d give you all this little piece first. 
> 
> Also - FUCK YA’LL MAGA’s : D
> 
> See you next time : D


	8. Adult

The walls around Bonesbrough gave the wrong impression - They gave the impression that there was a single defensive line that would keep the Cherubim out of the city, and that that line surrounded the whole city perimeter. That all someone needed to do was be behind the walls, and they would be generally okay, for the most part. 

Even to those that had read up on the history of Valeween - Like Luz - that feeling was present. It was hard to not feel like that was the case. On an intuitive level, the tall walls and defensive, protected installations would make anyone feel safe. It gave the air of a force that had been trained, and knew what it was doing. That there was a plan in place. That things would be okay. 

It wasn’t even close to being true. 

In reality, the walls served two purposes more than anything else - One being to keep other monsters and demons out of the city whilst Valeween was underway. Throughout other times, they were a manageable threat, and the maintainability of a wall was too expensive and time consuming to warrant its existence. During Valeween, it was temporarily erected, to ensure that on top of the Cherubim, the residents didn’t need to fear monsters like Snagglebacks or Land-Serpents, or anything else on top of the Cherubim. 

Secondly, it was to hold back the swarms that would roll over regions like tidal waves. Behavioural patterns of the Cherubim weren’t something that were even close to understood, in their logic or tactics. But they would always attack the walls if they were up, and completely cover the city in a blanket of themselves if it wasn’t. It really was a mystery that no one could understand, and it was unlikely that they ever would be able to. 

That didn’t mean that Bonesbrough was free of danger - Not at all. 

Cherubim, after all, could still fly. And thousands upon thousands didn’t join the attacks on the walls. 

They instead attacked the heart of the city. 

“Above you!” 

Luz reacted quickly to the warning, quickly throwing her hand into her jacket, and slapping a Glyph right against the nearest wall. As the Cherubim launched itself closer to her, it came into the path of the Ice Magic of the Glyph, and became encased in it, where with any luck, it would remain until the invasion was over. 

A minor victory in the grand scheme of things, but it was better than nothing. One-million was a smaller number than one-million-and-one. 

Boscha and Luz darted between alleyways, Luz following the Witch’s lead - Boscha had lived on the Isles and in Bonesbrough her entire life. She knew shortcuts and passageways that Luz didn’t even know existed. If she wanted to, Luz imagined she could get from one side of the city to the other in no time at all. 

Glimpses of attacking Cherubim could be seen in the brief moments between alleyways that led to a main street or walkway. Witches were casting spells and slashing with weapons at whatever invaders came their way. Many had developed their own tricks for avoiding the Cherubim Rays that were shot at them, some dodging them, and others using their Magic to attack them directly and fight against them.

All that being said though, confusion had swept the Isles, and Luz saw plenty of people running in the opposite direction to her, heard plenty of screaming, and saw what she could only assume were people who had failed, and been hit by the Cherubim Rays. They were sort of wandering, or going up to the people they knew. Often times they were defended, to not allow any Cherubim to feed from them. 

Not that she could hear or see much of anything specific from how far away she was. But people who were just freshly hit seemed to act differently. At least compared to the residents who were fleeing or fighting, that was for sure. 

“The marketplace is just a few alleys away!” Boscha yelled back to Luz. “You’re sure you know the way to plant-girls place from there, right?” 

“Her name is Willow! And yeah, I know where I’m going from there!” 

“Okay - What’s the plan?” 

Racking her brain for a second, Luz quickly formulated one. “Gus might have gone straight to Willows place since they live fairly close to one another - We swing by Willow place, see if either of them are there! If not, we go to Gus’ place, and check there! I know the way from Willow’s house!” 

It wasn’t much of an in depth plan, but it was a plan. Those were the only two places Luz could think to look. Everywhere else was as good a place as anywhere else for them to help defend alongside the rest of the militia. They’d have to check every point on the perimeter to find them after that, assuming that they were even there! 

But it wasn’t like Luz had any other idea what to do. This was better than nothing, right?

The Witch and the Human then burst out of the alleyway they had been running in, and into the marketplace. Just like everywhere else, it was like a battlefield. 

Cherubim were attacking whatever Witches they could find, shooting beam after beam at those who were trying to fight back or get away. Dozens surrounded any one individual Witch, and they had to defend themselves with whatever weapons they had, whatever spell they knew, or whatever tools were available to them. Some handled the stress better than others. Others panicked. 

They were the easiest targets. 

Regardless, Luz took the lead, and they ran along the least crowded side of the marketplace, making a beeline for the direction Willows home was in. The occasional Cherubim tried to attack them, but Boscha’s fireballs made quick work of them. Those that got too close, Luz would hammer with her baseball bat. 

At one point in their path, a Witch had found himself cornered by a flock of the Cherubim, and he didn’t seem to have any Magic left in him, exhausted as he was. All he had to defend himself was the lid of a dustbin he was trying to use for a shield, for the little good that it seemed to do him, and cut off from his group, he had little chance of getting out of it unscathed. He was just waiting for the Cherubim to charge up their Rays and shoot him.

Once she was close enough, Luz slapped a Fire Glyph onto her bat, and slammed it into the nearest Cherubim. The flames engulfed the creature, and spread out to burn away a couple of the others. Boscha cast several fireball spells as well, turning more of them into ashes. The rest scattered, trying to get a distance, or pick new targets. 

Now free though, the Witch allowed himself to let out an exhale, and face the two girls who had saved him. “Th-Thank you. I thought they were gonna -“ 

A blue light suddenly slammed into him - A Cherubim from above had shot him with a Ray! 

Boscha shot fireballs at the now retreating creature, and did eventually wipe hit it, but the damage had already been done. A yell of pain came from the Witch as he attempted to fight back against the influence. 

To absolutely no avail. His resistance only lasted a few seconds. 

Before, his eyes had been a dark shade of green. Now, they glowed a bright blue. 

For a moment, his face was that of calm. He looked towards Luz, and then towards Boscha, but he seemed to not react at all - He had no frame of reference for either of them. There was nothing for him to say to them. 

His gaze went over the marketplace though. In the middle of the marketplace, there was another male Witch, roughly his age, who seemed to be far better with hand-to-hand weapons than he had been. 

An expression of fury took hold of the affected Witch. 

“Wait, hold on - “ Boscha quickly tried to cast a spell, but the male Witch darted straight past her with shocking speed, and towards the other Witch.

As soon as he was in range, the affected Witch swung the lid he was using like it was a weapon. “Hegio!” 

The other Witch - Hegio - turned quickly, and was able to cast a spell that enlargened both his hands, allowing him to block the incoming strike. He seemed confused for a moment, before he realised what was going on. 

“Letca’s been hit!” He yelled back to the rest of his group, before turning to his attacker. “Lecta, buddy, it’s me! We’ve known each other for years! We’re friends!” 

“You’re an arrogant, self-entered, ego-maniacal scumbag! You think I like being anywhere remotely near you?! The only reason I put up with you - Why anyone in the Coven puts up with you - Is because you’re talented! That’s it!” 

“Lecta - “ 

Two other Witches arrived by Hegio’s side, and cast spells that caused the ground underneath Lecta to open up, and allow him to fall into it, like a hole. The second he was in said hole, the dirt moved upwards, creating a perfect cube above the ground. Inside, Lecta could be heard screaming and raving about Hegio, but he was mostly harmless. 

Luz had read about this - Infected Witches were usually restrained or kept elsewhere, so as to avoid running the risk of allowing an immature Cherubim the chance to mutate into an Adult one by drinking the blue goo from an affected Witch. That Witch - Lecta - would probably remain there until the next day, when all of this was over. 

Which was probably for the best, all things considered - Because Lecta seemed to have an immense amount of fury in his soul. And to be blunt about it, from what she heard him screaming about in his new prison, sounded completely unhinged. 

For his part, Hegio seemed to be somewhat distressed by the words that had been thrown his way, but he shook his head, and rejoined his allies. Luz couldn’t even be sure if the accusations Lecta had thrown Hegio’s way were reliable. Cherubim compelled people to be honest about their feelings towards a person - Not what was an objective truth. Hegio could be a nice guy for all she knew. All she knew for sure was Lecta hated him. 

Even though they were colleagues for years, apparently. She had a feeling she’d just witnessed that relationship, whatever it had been, be destroyed. 

In an instant. 

She gulped. 

“Come on.” Boscha urged, pushing Luz away from the cube. “Don’t think too much about it. We’re on a mission, remember?” 

Luz blinked - That was right. They had to find Willow and Gus. 

A new sense of urgency filled her. 

“Right.” She nodded, looking away, and back in the direction they were headed. “Right - Follow me!” 

She burst into a sprint.

* * *

Just a few days ago, when the first mentions of Valeween evaded Luz’s understanding, she had found Willows house an oddity in it’s normalcy, as Bonesbrough turned all the weirder. While everyone else was setting up fortifications, and getting ready for the attack, Willow’s home stood as the odd one out, in that it was in no rush at all to fortify itself. At least, not in the panicked state that everyone else was. 

Unlike a lot of people, Willow had a deeply nuanced view on just about every aspect of the Cherubim. Given the reason for this, her parents probably shared this outlook too. They reflected a lot of her own personal philosophy in regards to honesty, even if she understood that the entirety of the Boiling Isles wasn’t ready or able to adopt a similar way of thinking, at least not yet. Her lack of abject hatred for the Cherubim felt rare to Luz - A lot of other people seemed to regard the Cherubim with only hate or fear. But in spite of her nuanced outlook, she was still willing to defend Bonesbrough from their invasions, understanding the dangers of them.

It was difficult to not at the very least respect Willow’s perspective, even if one couldn’t bring themselves to agree with it. Being able to stick with that sort of outlook, even when it wasn’t popular, showed conviction if nothing else. 

Much of Willow’s neighbourhood was abandoned, it’s residents already having managed to evacuate the area, and join with the defensive militia. Some were still scattered about the neighbourhood, fighting off whatever Cherubim landed around here, or trying to locate loved ones or friends, same as Luz and Boscha were, though to both of them, those resisting were only heard, and not seen. 

Every so often another group of Cherubim would try their luck against them. Boscha would handle them from range, and Luz would handle the ones that got in too close. Without a word, they seemed to have adopted and accepted this tactic, splitting between their abilities, and what the situation needed. 

Between the two of them, they were actually a fairly effective force.

“Do you even think she’s still going to be here?” Boscha asked, once they wrapped up dealing with another incoming group. “Most of this place seems to have been abandoned already, maybe she got out!” 

No sooner had Boscha asked the question though, did a sudden shake of the ground occur. Both Luz and Boscha grabbed hold of the nearest public bench that was nailed to the ground and held throughout the entirety of the tremor. To Luz, for a moment, it felt like an earthquake. A loud, heavy crashing noise accompanied it. 

And above the tops of the buildings that made up the neighbourhood, plants began to erupt into the sky, striking at everything that was Cherubim-shaped. Vines and man-eater plants, and a now  _ very grown-up _ Mr. Bitey spread out over the skies, like a net that would attack anything that came close to it. Cherubim kept throwing themselves at it, like they were trying to overwhelm it, but at least for right now, they weren’t able to at all.

From where they were in relation to her house, and from the Magic that the plants had to have come from, Luz couldn’t help but smirk. “There she is! That’s Willow’s Magic!” 

“Holy - “ Boscha didn’t even have a swear that felt like an appropriate reaction.  _ “Just how fucking strong is her Magic?!”  _

Luz’s smirk grew wider. Boscha hadn’t had much alternative other than to admit that Willow was strong and skilled after their Grudgby match, and all the months afterwards - The alternative would be to admit that she nearly lost to someone who was weak, that she only won because of some bizarre rule of the game, and that would be a shot to her pride she’d never accept. She might have been able to, before it became clear that the rest of her team had come to respect and even like Willow. It didn’t work like that anymore. 

But Luz knew that Boscha hadn’t ever seen Willow’s Magic at its  _ full _ strength. Willow was  _ incredibly _ powerful - If she’d never been put into a Track she had no interest in, as opposed to the Plant Track right from the start, that would never have been up for debate. 

Truce aside, it was hard not to feel a sense of satisfaction at Boscha’s reaction - Like it had just clicked in her mind that the only reason Willow hadn’t crushed her into the dirt was because  _ she was too nice to. _

“Come on!” Luz yelled over the noise, taking the fastest path she knew to Willow’s home. All the Magic was centered around there - She was still there, for certain! 

Getting there didn’t take long at all - They were already halfway there when the ground began to shake. Thanks to Willow’s plants, they didn’t have to deal with any incoming Cherubim either. It was a more or less clean path straight to the Plant Witch. 

Lots of wilted away and dead plants were scattered throughout the garden though. All of them the result of being defeated by Cherubim. She must have been stuck here since the very beginning of the invasion. 

Luz flung the door open - And immediately was met by raised hand above the cords of a heavy-ivory guitar, and a war cry. 

“AAAAAAA - Oh. Human! Hey!” 

“Skara?!” Luz blinked. “What the - “

“Eh? Skara?!” Boscha echoed, pushing her way past Luz. 

“Boscha?” Skara blinked twice. “What in the Realm are you doing with the Human?” 

“What in the  _ Titan’s name _ are  _ you _ doing  _ here?” _

“Well - “

“Luz!” Pushing past Skara, and running to hug the Human, another familiar face arrived. 

“Gus!” Luz happily hugged her friend back. Seeing her friend here was the first time she had felt truly relieved in the last thirty-or-so hours - He was okay! ”Oh,  _ Gracias a Dios  _ \- You’ve been here this entire time!” 

“Not the whole time.” Gus said, letting go. ”I got caught outside when the Cherubim Gate opened. I had to trick the Cherubim with my Illusions to get here!”

“Same thing happened to me.” Skara explained. “Both Willow and Gus saw me nearly getting cornered by like, three dozen Cherubim, and saved me! I’ve been here with them since, helping keep the Cherubim back.” The Bard Mage held up her Ivory Guitar, like it was proof of her contributions. 

“Wait - What is _ she _ doing here?” Gus then asked, like he had only just acknowledged Boscha’s presence there at all. Boscha almost looked like she flinched. 

“Basically the exact same thing.” Luz quickly summarised. The conversation was hectic because of all the parts at play - She needed to pull it back to a productive direction. “We’re cool for right now, but never mind that - Where’s Willow? We saw all that Plant Magic - That was her, wasn’t it?” 

“Yeah.” Gus nodded, though his face fell a bit more solemn. He turned in the corridor, and gestured for them to follow him into the main room. “We were going to make a run for it. Willow used up a ton of Magic giving the guard-plants a power boost, so they could protect us while we got outta here. I tried to help share the burden but - “ 

When they got into the main room, Luz saw that Willow was on the ground, leaning against the wall closest to the window, overlooking the guard-plants. Her eyes were closed, and sweat ran from her forehead. She looked absolutely  _ exhausted _ , and her breathing was heavy. It was clear that she had been overusing her magical abilities, exerting herself to keep the building, and everyone inside it safe, and that the giant display of power that they had witnessed was her up whatever was left of her reserves. 

She didn’t even have the energy to stand. 

“Willow!” Instantly, Luz dropped her bat, ran next to her friend, and knelt beside her. “Willow! Are you alright?!” 

One of Willow's eyes opened, and looked towards Luz. “Luz? Where’d... You come from?”

“We saw the plants from halfway across the neighbourhood.” Boscha answered the question, also kneeling down. 

Her second eye opened up, and Willow looked towards Boscha. “What… In the world are you doing here?” 

“She saved me earlier.” Luz quickly explained, worried that Boscha’s presence would upset Willow if she didn’t make it clear that she wasn’t here to cause trouble. “And… Offered to help me find you and Gus.” 

True as it was, it was still weird to say. It just wasn’t something anyone in their group expected Boscha to do.

“I’m not leaving people out here.” Was all Boscha said to justify her actions. “I’ll take whatever shit you want to give me later.” 

Looking towards Boscha, Willow’s expression was mild - Apparently she was too tired to even really be able to really express much of anything right now, or even question it any further than that. But her expression was one of surprise, which quickly relaxed into a soft smile. “...Thank you.” 

For a reason Luz didn’t know, Boscha let out exactly one laugh. “You’re one tough Witch, aren’t you?”

Willow just continued to smile for a moment, but then turned to Luz. she spoke between breaths. ‘The... Spell. The Spell’s only going to last a few minutes. We… Need to move.”

“How’re we going to move her?” Skara asked. “We never talked about that part!” 

“Alright,“ Boscha said, getting up. “Someone get her -“ She jabbed a thumb towards Willow, “- Something to eat, or drink, or an anti-sleep potion or a rejuvenation spell or  _ whatever _ the heck she needs to get some energy back, and give me a minute to think.” 

Quickly, Luz rummaged through her bag, until she was able to find the Glyph she was looking for - A Rejuvenation Glyph. A Healing Track lesson with Viney had helped her discover the Glyph about two months ago. It was slow acting, at least by Magical standards, but it would help feed some energy back into Willow’s system. She attached the Glyph to her friend's forehead and activated it, and backed away as the light blue glow began. 

“Gus, come on.” Luz urged, getting onto her feet. “I’ll see if they have anything in the cupboards, you should get her some water or something.” 

“Right.” 

The pair of them made their way towards the kitchen, and began to gather anything that they could find. Gus got the largest glass that he could find, and used his Illusion Magic to create a straw, so Willow wouldn’t even need to move. Luz meanwhile raided the cupboards, looking to find something Willow could eat, but kept stumbling across pots, pans, and other utensils, and not foodstuffs. 

Now that everything had calmed down, at least a little bit, Luz found her mind wandering again. 

All back to Amity, and the way they had yelled at one another. 

Was she okay? The invasion being this early - It must have caught her unaware too, right? So was she okay? Did she end up trapped like Willow had done? Was she on her own? 

Was she alright? 

Was - 

Luz shook her head again. She - She couldn’t be thinking like that. Amity was strong. She was skilled. She was clever. She could handle herself. And right now, Willow was what was important - She was the one here, who needed help. 

But Luz couldn’t help it. It was all she could think about. 

Amity was all she could think about.

How badly she had messed everything up. 

How much danger Amity could be in right now. 

How all that could have been avoided if she had just  _ minded her own damned business.  _

“Gus?” Luz asked, tentatively. “Have you heard from Amity at all?” 

“Nothing.” Gus answered, pretty much immediately. “Willow said something was going on with you two, but she wouldn’t tell me what.” 

“...I… I messed up.” What was she supposed to do? Go into an in depth explanation of what had happened? She flung open another cupboard. “I - I just, I - I’m worried about her. I - I know it’s messed up and selfish - Willow’s right here and needs our help, but I can’t help it - I can’t stop thinking about it - About her! We’re being attacked from literally every single direction - “ 

She slammed the cupboard door shut - A lot harder than she had meant to. For a couple of seconds, she leaned against it. 

“ - And all I can be worried about is her!” 

Her words had been fast - Very fast. Whatever Willow had told him, it hadn’t been enough for Gus to understand why Luz was this worked up, and this upset over whatever had happened between her and Amity. He looked surprised, and slightly freaked out by Luz’s behaviour. 

Still, he tried to rise to the task as the voice of reason. 

“Calm down.” He said, firmly, but not dismissively. He grabbed hold of Luz’s shoulder, and in spite of their height difference, made sure to look her in the eye. “You can be worried about more than one thing at a time. I don’t know what’s going on between you and Amity, but you and I both know that Amity is more than capable of looking after herself. She’s one of the top students at Hexside, if any of us can get through tonight without getting hit by a Cherubim, it's her. But we can’t help Amity right now - We can help Willow, and she needs our help.” 

“I know.” Luz nodded. “I know, I know, I just…” 

She didn’t know how else to put it.

“...I feel like I’ve made the biggest mistake of my life, and I don’t know why.” 

The look Gus gave her reminded her truly, that he didn’t know what was going on. That he didn’t know what had happened between her and Amity. Willow had respected the fact that Luz wanted to keep this personal. 

_ Another selfish desire that had caused more harm and confusion that it needed to.  _

“...Sorry.” She muttered. “Sorry. I’m - I’m okay now.” 

“Are you - “ 

“You two find anything, or what?” 

Boscha’s voice cut into the conversation. When both of them looked in her direction, they could see her looking out the window. 

When she looked back, she looked shaken. “‘Cause we’re gonna want to get moving,  _ fast _ .” 

After a brief look of concern towards his Human friend, Gus took the water in his hands to Willow. Luz meanwhile flung open another cupboard - Finally, she had found food. She had no idea what in there Willow normally ate though, and most of it was in packages, so she just grabbed the closest thing to a cereal bar that she could see. It would have to do. 

Willow was sipping on the water Gus had gotten for her through the straw when Luz arrived, and handed her the bar of food. She immediately opened it up and took a huge bite out of it - Casting spells that powerful made a Witch hungry, Luz supposed. 

“Thank you.” She thanked both her friends after she swallowed the first bite. “I - I really needed that.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” Luz told her. The brief lull gave her the chance to ask a question that she’d had since she arrived. “Are your dads at the walls?” 

The Plant Witch nodded. “I told them I was going to meet with you, so they left early to help set everything up.” 

“That explains why you’re here on your own then.” Luz nodded, in understanding. Then she bit her lip. Selfish as it made her feel to ask… “...Have - Have you heard from Amity?” 

Gus gave her a look. Willow gave her a sympathetic expression, before shaking her head. 

“No. Sorry, Luz.” 

“Okay,” Gus said, “One of you is going to need to explain to me what’s been happening with Amity.” 

Luz opened her mouth to speak. 

“I saw an Adult Cherubim out there.” 

All attention was suddenly on Boscha. There was a seriousness to her voice, and just that hint of fear, that made everyone take her at her word without question. That fear was in her expression too, though she was clearly making an effort not to show it, and was acting in spite of it.

“How big?” Skara asked, biting her lip. 

“Big.” Boscha flatly answered. “A young Snaggleback big.” 

Skara shivered. 

“Just running for it isn’t much of a plan anymore.” Boscha continued. “Those things’ll pick up on us if we make too much noise. Us charging straight out of the neighbourhood will get it’s attention.” 

“Could we fight it?” Luz questioned. “Between the five of us, we should be able to do something, right?” 

“As a last resort, maybe.” Gus answered. “But Adult Cherubim are a lot more dangerous than regular Cherubim - We don’t lose anyone to regular Cherubim. We have lost people to Adult Cherubim before.” 

“Not in a long time.” Willow pointed out. She shifted in her place, moving for the first time since the others had arrived. “It’s still rare for it to get that bad.” 

“Still too much of a chance for my liking.” Boscha nodded towards Gus. “I’m with the Illusionist. We want to avoid this thing if we can.” 

“What about staying here?” Luz questioned - If the Adult Cherubim were as dangerous as they were saying, then they should be looking at every possibility they could, shouldn’t they? 

Willow shook her head. “It’ll only be a matter of time until the Adult Cherubim finds us if we stay here. We’re better off moving, and getting help.”

“Okay - So, do we have a plan?” Luz glanced outside the window, wondering if she’d be able to see the Adult Cherubim. She saw nothing. Just Willow’s plants continuing to fight off the regular Cherubim. 

“We’ll have to sneak our way out of here.” Boscha told the group. “Through houses where we can. Skara, you can use your Bard Magic to dampen whatever noise we make, right?” 

“It’ll be difficult if we’re moving, but if we go slow, I could manage it.” 

“Illusionist, could you make us look inconspicuous to the Cherubim?” 

“My name is Augustus. And I could buy us a minute or two, maybe. Remember, Cherubim managed to find people even when we hid in basements and built huge forts in the Savage Ages - We can fool them for a bit, but they’ll see through us pretty quickly.” 

Everyone stayed silent while Boscha glanced around the room - Luz could tell, the same mind that came up with a variety of diverse plays and strategies for Grudgby matches was at work here, and Boscha was trying to figure out how to best use everyone and what they were good with. It was how she had managed to naturally take charge of this little escape plan they were having to come up with. 

It was easy to put faith in her ideas when she put as much pride as she did in her Grudgby reputation, and the work she put into the title. In the context of the situation, no one really minded her taking charge here.

“Okay.” Boscha said, hitting her fist into her other, open hand. “We go house to house when we can, and alleyways when we can’t - Skara, you make sure we’re as quiet as we can be. Augustus, you make us as camouflaged as best you can when we’re not in a house. If any Cherubim get close to us or see through us, we want to take them out as quickly and quietly as we can - So, everyone should grab hold of a weapon.” 

Luz glanced around the room, looking for the baseball bat she had dropped. It wasn’t where she had dropped it, and for a moment, she panicked that she had somehow lost the thing. 

She then found it, tapping against her shoulder. Holding it was Skara, offering it to Luz with an extended arm. “Here. Saw you bringing this in, I guess this is your weapon, or whatever?” She offered a smile as well. 

Taking her bat back, Luz returned it. “Thanks.” 

Around her, everyone was rummaging around to find something that could be used as a melee weapon. Willow pointed towards a door that led to where she and her dads kept the gardening equipment - Plenty of things in there that would be useful as weapons. 

Skara armed herself with a kitchen knife - Something she could slide into the belt she wore, could use one handed, and could holster if need be, so she could strum her Ivory-Guitar’s chords and use her Magic. Gus picked out a garden spade for himself, and Boscha claimed a scythe-like garden hoe. Willow’s plant Magic was quiet as it was, so she didn’t feel the need to pick one out - If it needed to get loud, then it would be because the Adult was already on them. Luz just attached Ice Glyphs to her bat, and got herself ready to swing. 

“You keep yourself rested and don’t waste any energy.” Boscha told Willow. “If we run into that thing, your Magic is probably our best bet against it.”

Willow nodded. Luz and Gus helped her onto her feet.

“Are we all ready?” 

No one moved, or said anything. In reality, they weren’t. Not really. 

But it wasn’t like they had much other choice. 

“Alright then. Let’s go.”

* * *

The next hour and a half was spent in near complete silence by the group. Each time they got near a house, they had to open it as quietly as they could, and try to get a sense for what was around them, where they could go, what was the shortest route out of here, and if it was safe to do so. That took up the vast majority of their time, checking for anything that might even resemble the Adult Cherubim. 

Luz, at least, didn’t see it. Skara claimed to once or twice, but it was difficult to know if she was being a hypochondriac or not. Still, they took what she said seriously, and plotted courses around it. Better to be safe than sorry. 

Next, they would have to get out of the house, again, as quietly as they could. Gus would then cast Illusions to camouflage the group, usually by making the space around them indistinguishable from them themselves. In flora-heavy areas, Willow would help, and use a bit of her Magic to provide flora-based camouflage, the hope being that the Cherubim would at the very least, be fooled by the existence of actual plants on their person for a minute or two longer. Skara would, the whole time, be casting a Bard Spell, similar to the one that Luz had noticed back when she first got inside the walls - A sort of noise dampening spell, that could lower, but not erase, sound. Only this time, it was targeted towards them, and not towards the exterior Cherubim. 

And this process repeated, over and over again. House to house, street to street, and alley to alley.

Willow’s plants had stopped providing them aerial cover a long time ago, as the boost of power they had received from the Plant Witch had died out not long after they left her house. So the threat of regular Cherubim was back, and had to be taken into consideration - Lest they attract the attention of the Adult one in the chaos. 

It was all just a matter of time though. If hiding from the Cherubim was this simple, Valeween wouldn’t have been an issue to begin with. A more permanent solution would have been discovered long ago. And everyone involved knew it. 

They were buying time - Nothing more - To get away from the area, from the Adult Cherubim, and to get to a safer area, or one with more people, so they could fight against it. 

Eventually, they would be seen through. 

So they had to move while keeping both of these contradictory points in mind.

And all the while, Luz’s mind was stuck firmly on Amity. Wondering if she was having to do something similar to this. 

Taking point, Boscha managed to get a door open on a single-story house - How she managed to get in, and what Magic she knew to break into buildings, some of which were even boarded up, was something Luz had decided not to question right now. Everyone filed into the building as quickly as they could, and once they were all in, Boscha shut the door. Everyone allowed themselves to breathe again, as they all tended to do once they had a roof over their heads. It made them feel safer. 

A quick scan of the building revealed four rooms, and six windows. The largest room was a living room, which was the room connected to the door entrance, and was the room everyone congregated in after checking the windows, scanning for any sign of Cherubim, Adult or otherwise. 

“Did anyone see anything?” Gus asked, whispering, as had become customary for this process. 

No one said anything. Skara and Willow shook their heads, and Luz shrugged. 

“I saw the place Luz and I started.” Boscha repealed. “We’re nearly back to the walls - We just need to get through a few more - “ 

_ Thud. _

Everyone froze, absolutely still. 

_ Tak, tk. Tk tk tk.  _

It came from the roof. Like narrow, thin needle-like footsteps, sharply hitting against slate tiling. Everyone in the building looked up at it, like they were trying to pinpoint exactly where it - whatever it was - was on the roof. 

_ Tk. Tk tk tk. Tak. Tak. Tak.  _

A buzzing sound followed. 

Then, silence. 

Everyone exhaled. 

_ Part of the roof suddenly was smashed inwards.  _

Fragments of wood and slate scattered throughout the interior of the room, causing everyone to shield heads to avoid the debris. People staggered back, trying to get away from the place the roof had been smashed into. Dust stung everyone’s eyes, forcing them to close, and rub out whatever dust had entered. Some were faster than others. 

When Luz managed to clear her eyes, she was face to face with a black orb with a red dot staring her right in the eyes. 

It was hanging from the ceiling, and seemed to be looking at her as though it were upside down. A long, white, segmented neck was craned towards her. Fur hung down, pulled towards the ground by gravity. 

At the top, or from Luz’s perspective, the bottom, of the eye, was an elongated horn. It was the final piece of confirmation, but really, Luz hadn’t needed it in the slightest. 

She already knew it was part of the Adult Cherubim. 

_ It had found them. _

Panic froze into everyone - It would have been the perfect time to strike, but the shock and fear flooded every inch of their bodies. No one could even think about moving, never mind launching a coordinated strike. 

So they just stared at it, and it stared back. 

For a moment, it scanned the room, looking around, like it was taking stock of it’s cornered prey. Then, it’s head retracted back out the hole it had created on the way in. 

A horrible, gurgling shriek then was heard as the Adult Cherubim roared, like it’s entire throat was backed up with flem and saliva. Yet, the shriek was high pitched, unmistakable, even to someone who had never heard it’s cry, and _ loud.  _

Loud enough to attract swarms of Cherubim. 

Everything suddenly happened at once. 

“Seal that hole!” Boscha yelled out loud, no longer bothering to keep her voice down - No point anymore. “Now!” 

Willow reacted first, casting a spell, and creating layers of thick, study vines to prevent the swarms of Cherubim, or the Adult Cherubim, from getting through. Her vines covered the entirety of the interior of the roof as well, and the banging of the Adult Cherubim could be felt. as it tried to re-enter the room, but the damages if inflicted not witnessed thanks to the plants.

“Windows!” Came Boscha’s next order - Windows were a structural weakness - It would take next to no effort for the Cherubim to fly through, shatter the windows, and get in to attack them. 

Luz and Gus ran to the nearest windows in the living room - An Ice Glyph barricaded one, and a moved bookcase blocked the other. Skara and Boscha ran to the doors that led to the other rooms, slammed them shut, and barricaded them - It was faster than running into the rooms to block the windows themselves. 

As it turned out though, the windows weren’t barricaded enough. Rapid, heavy thudding followed, and the bookcase Gus had moved fell to pieces. 

And in flooded dozens of Cherubim. 

Their location already known, the group of teenagers didn’t even bother to keep quiet - Yelling and screaming followed, as Magic spells of all forms were unleashed, all of them desperate to crush the Cherubim before they could affect anyone. Beams of blue from the Cherubim Rays were shot at them all, that they had to avoid or deflect back. 

Each member of the group slashed at the incoming Cherubim with their various weapons - Skara stabbed a few before she equipped her Ivory-guitar, and began to strum on chords, which sent out physical shockwaves that only affected those who were hit by the Bard Magic. Gus slammed his spade into the Cherubim, and Boscha’s garden hoe cleaved through groups. Luz’s bat made quick work of the Cherubim that came towards her as always. 

But more kept on coming in. The window needed to be sealed before they could do anything. 

Already, everyone was busy, distracted, and fighting off the Cherubim as best they could - Luz was the closest to the window. She slammed another Ice Glyph against the wall, and directed the ice in the direction of the window, and then she slammed another one down for good measure. The resulting ice created a wall, crushing several Cherubim, freezing half a dozen more within, and sealing off the window to any outside Cherubim. 

The action had left Luz vulnerable though - In the few seconds that she had needed to seal the window, a Cherubim had gotten in close to her, beam charged behind it’s teeth. 

And then, the razor sharp point of a garden hoe erupted from it’s eye, and then turned to dust. Once more, Boscha had saved her from getting Cherubim Ray’d. 

For less than one second, the two shared a grin. 

Before a blue light struck Boscha’s back, and a Cherubim swooped at Luz. 

“Boscha!” Luz yelled, ducking and leaping forwards, past Boscha’s now knocked onto the ground body, making sure to avoid the Cherubim swooping at her. She turned on her heels, and slammed the bat into the Cherubim that had shot Boscha, a violent anger filling Luz as she did so. 

Friends or not, Boscha had saved Luz twice throughout Valeween so far - She had deserved better than to just get shot  _ like that at least.  _

_ Seeing her get shot like that made Luz feel nothing but hate towards the Cherubim. _

It only took a short time to clear up the rest of the Cherubim, mostly thanks to Willow’s plants being able to hit multiple creatures at once. The Cherubim were blocked out of entry, though from the sounds they made, they didn’t stop trying, slamming on doors and the roof. 

“Is everyone alright?!” Gus asked, once the final Cherubim had been dealt with. 

“I’m oka - Oh, Titan, Boscha!” 

Willow noticed Boscha knocked onto the ground before Luz had even had the chance to tell everyone what had happened. Already, the Plant Witch was trying to help get the Grudgby Captain off the ground, to check her for injury. 

“Are you alright?” Even towards someone who had caused her nothing but grief, Willow’s kind nature won out. 

“Wait, Willow!” Luz quickly shouted. “She got - “ 

Her head lulled towards the ground once she was kneeling upright, Boscha then looked up at the Plant Witch. And Willow saw. 

Her three eyes all glowed blue. 

“...Hit.”

A tense moment followed - They couldn’t get away from Boscha, the Cherubim were all outside and in the next rooms over. Couldn’t cast a spell on her - Willow was in front of all of them. And everyone’s fight, flight, or freeze instinct kicked in. All of them froze. 

Luz remembered all the taunting and bullying Boscha had done towards Willow, and reminded herself of the sort of person Boscha was. She expected Boscha to attack Willow, like they had seen happen between those two male Witches earlier, and felt her hands tighten into fists. 

But that didn’t happen. 

When Boscha moved, it wasn’t to harm Willow. 

_ It was to hug her.  _

Willow froze. Everyone flinched. And Boscha spoke. 

“I’m sorry.” She said. It was gentle, and barely more than a whisper, but it was enough that everyone could hear her. “I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry. For everything.” 

“B - Boscha?” 

“I treated you like crap for years. I hurt you. Bullied you. Called you weak, because it made me feel better about myself. Because you’re everything that I wish that I was, but every time I try, I fuck it up. You’re nice, you’re good to people, and - And I don’t know how to be.” 

Suddenly, Boscha’s eyes shut, and her grip on Willow tightened. A strained, teeth-gritting groan escaped her, and she let out a noise of pain. 

_ She was still resisting the influence of the Cherubim Ray, _ Luz realised. To be able to resist even a little after the effect had already taken hold - That took strength. That took willpower. 

It only lasted a couple of seconds though. And then, Boscha’s eyes opened again, and her grip loosened on Willow. Willow was still mostly frozen, unsure what to do or say in this situation. Boscha let go of her, and looked her in the eyes. 

“You’re strong - You’re so much stronger than anyone ever gave you any credit for.  _ You _ won our Grudgby match. If it wasn’t for the Rusty Smidge, you would have beaten me, and everyone knows it, and I do too. You could have acted smug, like how I’d treated you, but you didn’t. When the others asked you to join the team, you didn’t because you saw me and how afraid I was that you would - I - I don’t know if you had other reasons, but everyone knows that that was part of why you didn’t. You’re kind - You’re the single kindest person that I know, and I don’t know how you do it… You’re… You’re better than I am. And that doesn’t fix anything, and I know that. And I’m sorry…”

Another hug followed - But this one was soft. So incredibly soft, Luz didn’t even know if it could be considered a hug. 

“...But I like you. I like you a lot.” 

“What. Is. Happening?!” Gus’s hands ran into his hair as he watched all of this play out, and practically shouted his reaction out. And for Luz, it was very, very hard not to agree with his sentiment.

_ That was how Boscha saw Willow?!  _

_ It was a curveball, if nothing else. _

There were so… So many questions at play after that - But Luz remembered the Valeween for Witchlings book suggestions. To keep people apart if one was infected by a Cherubim Ray. Keep them near people who they didn’t know to avoid social strife. Obviously though, trapped in a building, with Cherubim swarming it, and an Adult Cherubim on the prowl God knew where, that wasn’t exactly an option. 

The only thing that she could think to do was to remove Boscha from Willow - Before this went somewhere no one was comfortable with. 

_ As if they were any more comfortable with what they had already seen.  _

Still, she’d rather hear Boscha go on a tirade about how she hated her than… Whatever this was. She didn’t have even the first clue what must have been going through Willows head. 

“Er… Okay Boscha, come on now.” Luz said, grabbing hold of her arms, and unwrapping them from Willow. She managed to get her away from her friend, and onto her feet. 

“Are you okay, Willow?” Gus asked, kneeling beside his friend, and placing a hand on her shoulder, trying to offer… Some sort of comfort to her.

For her part though, Willow just seemed… Confused, and taken aback, more than anything else. She was still mostly frozen, and her expression was impossible to read. Like a hundred-meter-stare, only…. 

...It was hard to tell. 

“I don’t know what to think about you.” Boscha more or less immediately told Luz, as soon as they made eye contact with one another. 

Luz blinked. Not…  _ Quite _ what she had expected to hear. 

“You’re loud, and annoying. And you’re a Human.” Okay,  _ that _ she had expected to hear, “But I meant what I said back during the Grudgby match. You’re a good friend. I… I admire that. I couldn’t do what you do. I don’t think anyone would do that for me, either.” 

“Okay, I’m taking over before  _ this one _ gets weird too.” Gus announced. He grabbed Boscha’s wrist, and dragged her to the other corner of the room - He couldn’t care less what Boscha thought about him. “Luz, you should check on Willow - I’ll see if I can find a way to deal with Boscha.” 

The Human nodded. For a second, her gaze lingered on Boscha - It was honestly hard not to feel bad for her. 

She then turned back to Willow, and knelt down next to her. She’d barely moved. 

“Hey, Willow, are you er, okay?” Luz reached out, and placed her hand on Willow's shoulder, trying to offer… Some kind of support. She gave it a gentle push too, to get her attention.

Willow blinked, and finally moved. She must have been lost in her own mind. “I, er… What just happened? Did - Did that really just happen?” 

What was Luz supposed to even say in response to that? 

_ Someone who had taunted Willow for years, while under a Cherubim Truth Ray, essentially confessed that they were in fact in love with her. What could she even say? _

It turned out, nothing. She couldn’t think of anything to say. All she could do was look back at Willow, with an expression of confusion and uncertainty that mirrored that of her friend’s. 

And that was all she could do for the entirety of the time until Gus re-joined them. “It’s done.” He said, simply. 

“Done?” Luz asked, and looked past him. “What’s - “ 

Boscha’s eyes were all closed, and Skara was knelt by her, and she was playing a few, gentle cords on her ivory-guitar. Her lips were moving, like she was speaking, and a Magic circle hovered in between her and Boscha. _ A Bard Lullaby Spell _ . They had put Boscha to sleep. It was really the only thing that could be done, given the circumstances. 

“...She just thanked me.” Gus said, to no one in particular. “For being there for Willow when no one else was. That’s all she said to me.”

The three of them just sat there for a moment. Boscha was…. The last person that any of them had expected to hear… Any of what they had just heard from. The absolute last person. 

None of them had any idea how to react. What to even say to one another. Knew what came next. What was supposed to happen once Valeween was over. 

“...I think I’m starting to see why a lot of people keep secrets.” Was all Willow could bring herself to say. 

“...Wait.” Luz said, and pressed her finger against her lips. “Shhh. Do you hear that?” 

A pause. 

“...No?” Gus answered, an eyebrow raised. “I don’t hear anything.” 

“Exactly.” 

Everyone blinked. 

The thudding on the walls, and against the other doors had stopped. The sound of the Adult Cherubim clattering along the roof had stopped. Everything was silent. Not even a buzzing sound could be heard. 

Had the Cherubim left? 

Decided that there were easier targets? 

_ Did Cherubim ever give up when they had found targets?  _

Suddenly, the door flung itself open, and everyone inside was on their feet, already ready to attack whatever came in - 

“Woah, take it easy - We’ve got people in here!” 

It was a Witch. At least a dozen of them. The one that had kicked the door in and spoken was from a Potions Coven. 

“Five kids!” Another Witch, this one from an Abomination Coven, yelled back out to the others. Movement was heard outside, as well as talking. 

Skara didn’t seem to know how to react to the new arrivals - No one really did. Where had they come from? What was happening? “Wh - What -“ 

“We saw an Adult Cherubim attacking this place. We figured there would be people trapped here.” The Potion Witch explained. “So we put together a rescue party of volunteers.” 

_ A rescue party.  _

Luz almost collapsed on her knees right then and there. They must have driven off and defeated the Cherubim - That was why the thudding had stopped. 

_ They’d been saved.  _

“Has anyone been hit by a Cherubim Ray?” The Abomination Witch asked. “Or does anyone have any other injuries?” 

“Jus - Just Boscha.” Willow answered, pointing, and then looking towards the unconscious girl. 

Witches from the Healing Coven moved past their allies, and making their way towards Boscha, and assessing the situation. One of them drew a Magic Circle, and unfolded a stretcher from a portion of their backpack. Boscha was loaded up, and taken out the door. The rest of them followed, helped by the rest of the rescue party where needed. Luz could breathe again. It wasn’t like Valeween was over. 

But this particular horror was at least done. 

“Alright, we’re going to need to move quickly.” The Potions Witch said. “We only managed to scare off the Adult Cherubim, we didn’t defeat it.” 

“Wait, it’s still out there?” Luz asked, feeling herself bite the inside of her lip. 

The Witch nodded. “It’s still out there, but we have more than enough Magic between us to handle it. But it’s better not to risk it, so - “ 

Another gurgling shriek came from behind - Atop a building across the street from the house they have just left. 

There it was. The Adult Cherubim. 

Far larger than a regular Cherubim, though that depended on how much blue goo they had consumed, typically - This one was about the size Boscha had said it was earlier; The size of a young Snaggleback. 

Similar in shape to a praying mantis to Luz, the creature had an insectoid body, with six limbs - Four legs, and two pincers, each covered in eradicating hairs, especially the pincers. Where the head of a mantis would be, was just a huge, black eye, with a red iris and pupil, fur covering the topside, and running along the segmented neck. At it’s back, a set of insect-like wings, that were protected by something similar to cera

The whole creature was monochromatic - Its underside a yellowish white, and the oversize a grey. Its pincers were dark grey, and its wings yellowish, but mostly see-through. 

Easily though, the most horrifying aspect of the creature was its mouth - It was located in the middle of the torso, just underneath where the neck would begin, and roughly level with where the pincers began. Teeth were jagged, and burst out at random angles, and a long tongue, covered in spit and gunk, wobbled and flickered out. 

_ A creature that could haunt nightmares.  _

It stared at the Witches and the Human for a few moments, and Luz thought for all the world that it was going to attack, and was already shakily reaching for her Glyphs. 

But then it tilted it’s eye. 

And scuttled away behind the building, letting out a roar as it fled. 

Rapid, scattering skittering could be heard, even from this distance. And eventually, it faded away, as distance was put between it and the Witches. 

“...Must have decided there were too many of us.” The Abomination Witch said, letting out a loud exhale. “Smarter than regular Cherubim… But Titan’s Mercy, they’re terrifying.” 

A moment of silence passed, as everyone caught their breath again. 

“...Let’s go.” The Potions Witch declared. And everyone began to walk again. For just a moment, Luz looked back. 

Then she followed the rest of the group.

* * *

A little bit more organisation had occurred in the now nearly two hours since Luz had been at the walls. It was still a disorganised mess, but now people were into the swing of things - Taking up positions, using their Magic and weapons in tandem, holding back against Cherubim that spilled over the top of the wall. 

No one knew why the Cherubim attacked the wall like they did, she learned from the rescue party - It was just something they did and no one on the Boiling Isles knew why. About what she expected. 

It felt a lot more like the drills that Luz had seen people taking part in over the last few days, like the training and practice had now finally kicked in. People had been thrown off guard by the early start, and that had been costly, but now they were getting into it, and things were going better. 

Relatively, anyway. 

Most notably though, the tents that Luz had seen here last time were starting to be filled up - More and more people getting hit by Cherubim Rays, and being quarantined for their own good. A lot of the strategy involved isolation, and putting people to sleep, as it turned out - Exactly in the same way Skara had done. The Healing Witches even praised Luz and the rest of her group for putting Boscha to sleep. All they had to do was make sure she wasn’t injured, and then make sure she didn’t hurt herself or anyone until daybreak. 

_ Not that it felt like it was something worthy of any kind of praise.  _

As Luz looked around, she wasn’t able to see Eda or Lilith. In the crowd of moving militia volunteers and healers, it was hard to see any one individual. 

She hung by the tents, mostly. Peeking inside occasionally, worried that her mentor or Lilith had been hit by the Rays. Thankfully, that didn’t seem to be the case - She did a full circuit around them, and couldn’t find any sign of either. 

But she did see schoolmates. People she knew. She even saw Viney and Jerbo in one, but couldn’t get anywhere near them, Healing and Bard Witches checking and inspecting them for injury. 

_ What in the world had they gotten themselves into?... _ She couldn’t linger to find out. 

The next tent over, she saw Willow. And Willow was just standing by the open entrance of the tent Boscha had been taken into, and was just… Stood there. Watching her. Undoubtedly with a million questions running through her head. Luz had a million running through her own. 

It… It felt like she had to say something. She couldn’t just ignore Willow and leave her there without at least checking on her. After everything Willow had done for her over her time here, it felt like the absolute least that she had to do. 

“Willow?” Luz gently said her friend's name, and tapped her shoulder to get her attention. “Are you okay?” 

Before saying anything, Willow looked at her Human friend, and then back towards Boscha.“...I’m… Alright.” She nodded, though her voice was a bit too shaken for Luz’s liking. “I’m just… I don’t know.”

“...That er… That happened, I guess.” It was all she could think to say. Luz didn’t often find herself at a loss for words, but right now, she really was lost for them. 

Was she supposed to offer sympathy? Some sort of encouragement? Laugh? What the heck was she supposed to even do? 

“Where, er…. Where’re Gus and Skara?” She asked. It was all she could think to say. Something to… Maybe take her mind away from it? 

“Gone.” Willow answered simply, and quietly. “Skara is helping some other Bard Witches in another tent, and Gus is with the Illusionists.” 

“...Right.” Stupid question, Luz thought to herself. Where else would they have gone? Maybe she should just be direct. “I,er… If… If you need to talk…” 

“...Thank you, but... I don’t want to be rude, Luz…” Willow let out a sigh, and again, turned to Luz. This time, Luz noticed how tired she looked. “...But I’d like to be alone right now. At least for a while, before I get asked to help on the wall. I just… I need to think.” 

All Luz did was nod. If that was what Willow needed, then she’d be perfectly happy to oblige. “Right. Sorry.” And she left Willow to her thoughts. 

Her pushing an issue like this had already… Had bad outcomes. She wasn’t going to repeat that mistake. 

She sighed as she left her friend to it, and looked up at the palisade walls. Of course, she still wished that she could offer Willow help. Someone to talk to, or some advice to give, or… Something. She couldn’t though. She didn’t know how. 

...So this happened every few years? This is what the Cherubim did to the Islands every time they showed up? Reading about it, and hearing stories about it, they were two wildly different things, Luz had learned. It was…There wasn’t really a way to properly describe it. 

Frustrating. Anxiety inducing. Worrying. She tried to imagine everything that would happen now, for both Boscha and for Willow. What hurt that brought and could bring. How embarrassed and humiliated either of them must have felt right now. How sudden everything was. 

Boscha had shown another side to herself today. That didn’t mean Luz liked her any more though. But she didn’t think Boscha  _ deserved _ what would inevitably happen now. It wasn’t fair. 

_ It wasn’t right.  _

And it wasn’t just them either. Viney and Jerbo were hurt now too. More and more people she knew were getting hurt. 

And what they had done to Amity before… 

And the more this day went on, the more vitriol she felt towards the Cherubim. For messing with people’s lives like that. For taking away their own ability to speak. Taking away their right to their own private thoughts and feelings. It angered her, far more than it should have. Far more than she thought was possible. 

...Her mind drifted to Amity again. 

This had to be how she had felt on the first day they all knew Valeween would be here. How she felt when she asked Luz to stay away from her for today…

...Luz did feel upset that there were things Amity wanted to hide from her. Things she didn’t know about. And things that she would now worry Amity thought about her in her mind. She couldn’t lie about that. 

But she understood now. Far more clearly, and far more than she thought she did before now. 

Because she didn’t understand before. 

Not really. 

...She wanted to see Amity. 

…And wondered what she would say to Amity if she was hit by a Cherubim Ray.

When she looked away from the walls, she looked in the direction of Blight Manor, hoping for a sense of… She didn’t know what. Closure? Ease? Some kind of psychic understanding between her And Amity - She didn’t have a clue. 

She didn’t expect to see flames. 

She didn’t expect to see a fire. 

But a fire was what she saw.

People around her were noticing too - It was only a recent thing, at least, relatively. Blight Manor was a bit away from Bonesbrough, but everyone knew roughly where it was - When the fire reached into the sky, it didn’t take anyone all that long to figure out what it was. 

Blight Manor was aflame. 

A blue flame, that reached above the trees and the buildings that were between the house, and where Luz was. It almost seemed like it was twisting on itself - Magic, maybe? 

After a few seconds, the flames dispersed, briefly into an eruption that spread across the sky. But then it rose again. 

This time, unaffected by Magic. 

And at that exact moment, another wave of Cherubim slammed against the wall. And the people around refocused on the wall, trying to hold the Cherubim back. Blight Manor would have to wait. 

It was Blight Manor, or it was the entire defensive line. 

But Luz ran. 

Straight towards the towering flames, without a thought in her mind other than Amity. 

She ran straight towards the fire.

* * *

**This chapter I’ve been looking forward to writing for quite a while - And hoo boy, a lot happened didn’t it. I know I have some Boschlow fans who read this story, so hopefully ya’ll had fun with this one >: 3 I’ve been reading a lot of it lately, and it’s a very, very interesting (and goddamn hilarious) dynamic to see, and i might do something explicitly about them in the future - My Boschlow fic recs include [Sitting In A Tree](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26687251), [Jackals Ladder](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26437150) and [Forestfire](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26279170/chapters/63975691) in case anyone is interested**

**The art for the Adult Cherubim was done by the same person who made the Cherubim in Chapter 1, who goes by Celrise the Traveling Artist - Be sure to give them a look see because Jesus Christ I didn’t expect something so horrifying but I’m so goddamned happy with what ended up coming back**

**With any luck you all enjoyed this chapter and are looking forward to whats next :3**

  
  
  
  
  



	9. Blue Flames

Valeween was a time in the Boiling Isles that, if someone wanted to make it out unscathed, their best best was to follow the rules of engagement that had been learnt through centuries of facing off against the creatures. Constant experimentation, the testing of new ideas, and risk were all fundamental to what little the Witches of the Boiling Isles had come to know about their otherworldly invaders, and if one wanted to get through the event with the best chance of not being infected by them, if they valued their social standing, and in some cases, their lives, they would respect those lessons learned. 

One of those rules was a very simple one. One that was absolutely foundational to the event unharmed, and with the best chances of wellbeing. It was one that was just as fundamental to the basic laws of nature, and eternally applicable to Witches and to Humans in life-and-death situations alike.

 **‘Never be alone.’** **  
****-Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 8, Page 78**

Cherubim were predators, and they acted as such - They would always go for the weakest target whenever they got the opportunity to. The old, the ill, the weak, and the young. Of every group though, someone who was alone was an easy target, every single time. One person could easily be outnumbered, out powered, and if need be, outlasted. So if someone was thinking right, or had a sensible head on their shoulders, they wouldn’t go off alone. They would stay in a group, and make sure they had at least one other person besides them, no matter what. 

But this was not a rule Luz was willing to respect right now. 

There wasn’t any time to grab hold of anyone, and there wasn’t any time to tell anyone where she was going. There wasn’t even any time to even think about doing either of those things. Luz didn’t even think in the slightest. 

She just ran. She ran as fast as she could, her body moving on its own as she darted down the streets and the alleyways needed to get to Blight Manor. 

A part of her mind knew what she was doing was dumb - That there was a very good chance that she got injured of infected by the Cherubim, and that she was probably going to be berated by everyone she knew when all was said and done.

Right now though, she couldn’t care less. 

Light blue flames continued to bellow into the sky from Blight Manor, and Luz had to work really, really hard to not let those flames fill her entire vision, lest she not see an incoming Cherubim, or God forbid, an Adult Cherubim. But she couldn’t tear her eyes away from it for too long either. And every second that passed motivated her to pick up the pace, to run faster, to get there as quickly as she could. 

Thousands of questions ran through her mind, all at the same time. 

_What had caused the fire?_

_Were Cherubim responsible, or was a Witch?_

_Was anyone in the Manor, or had it been abandoned for Valeween?_

_Where was Amity?_

_Was she okay?_

A swarm of Cherubim spotted Luz, and began to swoop down at the Human as she ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She saw them flying in, coming at her in a direct head-on assault. The lead Cherubim had already cracked it’s jaw open, and was charging it’s Cherubim Ray in it’s eye, ready to fire. 

Desperation and fury fuelled Luz’s movements as she reached into her jacket, and slammed three Ice Glyphs into the ground as soon as the Cherubim flew in close. 

Spikes erupted, and ran through about half of the Cherubim before they even got close to the Human. Chunks of ice formed stepping stones, allowing her to jump between the gaps, and slam her baseball bat with all her might against the Cherubim that had managed to dodge the ice. 

The final Cherubim, Luz attached a Light Glyph to, and she took immense satisfaction knowing that the heat of the Light would turn the creature into dust. She didn’t look back though. 

She just kept on running, straight to Blight Manor, as the creature burnt up behind her. 

Amity was all that Luz had on her mind. All she could think about. 

_All that mattered right now._

There was a distinct possibility that Amity wasn’t even at Blight Manor - That it had been abandoned, and that the fire was something completely unrelated to her being there. And that would make this huge risk she was taking a waste. 

Frankly, she didn’t care though. If it turned out Amity was nowhere to be found, Luz would consider that an absolute positive. She hoped for all the world that Amity _wasn’t_ at Blight Manor - She would rather this all be a waste of her time, and a pointless, stupid risk. 

But even the _chance_ that Amity was there was too much for Luz to take. _She had to know._

More than anything, Luz needed Amity to be okay. She had to be okay. _She had to be._ Luz still needed to tell her that she was sorry for pushing her like she had. She still had to fix everything. She - 

_She needed Amity to be okay._

_‘Please be okay, Amity.’_ She repeated to herself in her head as she ran, doing everything she could to run that bit faster. _‘Please be okay.’_

Another group of Cherubim began to charge at her, once again from straight ahead. This had to have been the third group that had tried to attack her since she began this charge towards Blight Manor, and each time, Luz had felt herself get more and more furious at them, and their existence. This whole mess, this whole situation - It was all their fault in the first place!

How Willow could see the creatures fondly, Luz doubted she would ever know. 

Her grip tightened on her bat, rose it above her head, and she charged. 

_“Get the hell out of my way!!”_

* * *

Amity hadn’t been planning on being stuck in Blight Manor for the duration of Valeween. 

It would have been easy to, and it had been sorely tempting - Ever since she had lashed out at Luz, she hadn’t felt like lifting a finger to do much of anything. All she could think about was how much she had screwed up, and how much Luz… Didn’t deserve the way she had spoken to her. How much she regretted it. How much she hated that she couldn’t take it back.

_How badly she had screwed up everything._

That consumed her mind. It didn’t let her think of anything else. It bugged her in so, so many ways that she had begun to lose track of them all. How many different ways she had screwed up over the course of two minutes. That was how long it took to screw up everything she had built over the last few months. Two minutes. 

After that, it was impossible to want to do anything. 

A few locked doors, send Beckham out with some money to hire the nastiest looking bodyguards that he could find that held no sense of civic duty - It wouldn’t have even been all that difficult to isolate herself entirely from the world today. And then, she could have spent the entirety of the event in her room, moping about how much of a screw-up she was. Trying to find… Some way to fix it. 

Miserable as she felt though, she didn’t have the intention to do what her parents had done - Just hidden behind other people, and left Bonesborough to fend for itself. She wasn’t her parents. She didn’t want to be like them - She wasn’t _going_ to be like them. She was going to help protect Bonesborough. Help fight off the Cherubim. She was going to be better than her parents were… 

…Or at least try to be. Even if she didn’t know if she could be. 

But she would try. Even though nothing - Nothing at all - could be further from what she wanted to do. 

More than anything, she just wanted to cry. 

The Cherubim had arrived early though - Earlier than anyone she knew remembered, and began to attack, and swarm everywhere that they could find. She hadn’t been ready. No one in Blight Manor had been ready. A full staff was still there, readying itself for the trip into the city, to join the defuses with their friends and loved ones. 

And now, they were stuck in the midst of a battle within Blight Manor. 

Amity’s sword slashed through the centre of another Cherubim, cleaving the creature in two before it burst into dust and went to be reincarnated on its side of the Realm. Ideally, she would have trapped it, and stopped it from involving itself in the invasion again, but right now, she was focused on making sure that no one got infected or hurt by the invaders. 

Plus, it felt very, _very_ good to take out her frustrations on the damned things that were responsible for those frustrations in the first place. 

“Everyone!” She yelled behind her, “Move! Quickly!” 

The staff behind her obeyed her commands, and followed her as she led them through another corridor, and pushed to reach the nearest exit from the Manor. Beckham was covering the rear, while Amity focused on the front. Everyone was armed, and able to use their Magic to engage with the Cherubim when they needed to, but Amity was capable of handing the worst of what the Cherubim would throw their way. 

It was her fault they were all in this mess - It _should_ be her at the front. 

For a few hours now, the Manor had been a hectic war zone, with no sense of structure, rhyme, or reason. Cherubim had almost immediately shattered the windows as they flew in, somehow knowing that inside they would find prey, and fired at anyone they could see, inciting mass panic and fear within all the staff, and within Amity herself. It had just been a hectic mad storm, as people fled in whatever directions they could to get away. At least half a dozen people had been hit by Cherubim Rays, and had needed to be rendered unconscious for their, and everyone else’s, well being. 

They were with the group right now, being carried by the other house staff, at the centre of the group, as far away from any Cherubim in any direction. Initially, they had been sealed off into separate rooms after being knocked out, to prevent the Cherubim from being able to feed from them.

Now that the Manor was on fire, they couldn’t just be left there. The risk of Adult Cherubim was just a risk they were going to have to take. 

Somehow being able to get some control over the situation for a time, Amity and Beckham had managed to wrangle everyone they could find in the Manor together, and between all of them, had managed to set up a defensive perimeter on the second floor. They had all barricaded the windows to prevent any Cherubim from flanking them, and they had done the same to the stairwell to the third floor - Any Cherubim that broke in from the third floor would find themselves completely unable to reach the second floor. 

From there, they had backed in a select series of rooms, and been able to hold out there for an extended period of time. A defensive line was formed, and the staff had managed to keep the Cherubim at bay, despite attack after attack. They hadn’t even lost anyone to a Cherubim Ray since they fell back to that position, thanks to everyone’s efforts and fighting, and a line of Abominations that Amity had created to soak up the blasts for everyone. 

While they had boxed themselves in with nowhere to run, they had created something of a kill-zone - Any Cherubim that got too close were practically disintegrated or were trapped, before they could do any damage at all. Hug swarms of Cherubim rushed them in pointless charges, seeking to whittle down their defences, but each time, it ended in failure. Whenever someone got tired, someone else would tag in, and keep up the line. Spells and objects aplenty made sure that they were able to hammer down as many as came their way. 

For a while, Amity had managed to let herself think that they would be able to get through the night like this, or would be able to thin out the Cherubim numbers enough that they would be able to make an escape attempt. 

Until the Adult Cherubim had arrived. 

It was one of the ones that had managed to drink the blue goo from one of the staff, before flying off, and mutating elsewhere. Only about half the height of the corridor, but plenty terrifying either way. It had known where the others were for a while now, but hadn’t made its move - Beckham had a theory that it had been seeking to flank them, but because of where they had positioned themselves, and how they had barricaded themselves in, hadn’t been able to find a place to do so. So all it had left was a frontal assault. 

Charging straight for the group, as it let out it’s horrid, gurgling shriek. 

The first spell Amity could think of was her fireball spell. Without a thought, she cast the thing - She didn’t aim it at the Adult Cherubim though, but one of her Abominations. 

As soon as the fireball met the Abomination, it erupted into a brilliant blue flame, and tackled the creature, wrestling and pushing it back down the corridor it had come from, and to the other side of the Manor, where it eventually exploded. 

It took out the Adult Cherubim. 

_But it also set the Manor aflame._

_Such a stupid move,_ Amity berated herself. Now everyone had to take the risk of getting infected and had to abandon a good defensive position, because of her screw-up. But she did what she could, and led the staff as they made the push to the main entrance of the Manor. They would have to take their chances at getting to Bonesborough. 

She didn’t even know what she had been thinking. 

She hadn’t been thinking. Not really. A part of it was panic. And another part… 

_She just wanted these damned things to burn,_ and didn’t give a damn if the entirety of Blight Manor went down with it. In her ideal world, this entire prison she called a home would have been torched to ash years ago. 

_But not with people still inside!_

_How was it even possible to screw up as badly as she had?!_

The blue fire got more and more common the closer they got to the main entrance, and all around them, it was spreading quickly. The group huddled closer together, trying to get away from the flames, following Amity as she led them back to the lobby, hoping to get them all out of here. 

Her parents wouldn’t care about the house. They might yell something about the legacy and family history, but at the end of the day, they could afford it being rebuilt exactly as it was. What could they do? Punish her for protecting the staff? 

_As if leaving them to die would look any better on their precious legacy._

Another Cherubim flew in front of Amity, opened eye, speeding straight towards her, almost screaming with the noises it made. The Witch used her sword to strike through it from right-to-left, letting the blade of her sword slam into the wall, before pulling it out again. 

_That was what they cared about._

_Not that Amity cared either way._

While they all moved, Amity looked back over her shoulder, to make sure everyone was still there. There were some faces that showed far more anxiety and fear over the whole affair than others, but they followed her either way. All it did was fuel Amity’s convictions to make sure they got out alright. _No one else was paying for her screw ups._

A couple more turns, and another two flocks of Cherubim that were cut down quickly, the group finally reached the balcony of the lobby - The roof of said lobby was practically covered in flames, consuming everything that it spread towards. At least half the building had to be up in flames now, and it was still spreading rapidly. 

Yet in spite of it, the Cherubim still wandered and patrolled, like they didn’t even notice the burning around them. But when they saw the group of Witches, the cracking of jaws and the firing of beams began once more. 

Amity and several of the staff responded by unleashing a hail of spells to quickly be rid of them, though both the noise, and what seemed like their ability to sense the infected the group had with them simply attracted more of the creatures, circling and swooping at them with every chance they got. Close, cramped quarters made it all the trickier to handle the Cherubim - Nowhere to back out, no kill-zone, nowhere to dodge, and all around them, flames. 

“Everyone, get out!” Amity yelled, using her Magic to create another Abomination to protect everyone as they made a run for the nearest door. 

She didn’t though - She wasn’t leaving until she made sure everyone got out of the Manor first. 

A couple of the staff hung back to assist her in holding off the invaders, but the majority followed her order to the letter, running out and getting into the open air. Behind her, Amity could hear the sounds of people fighting the Cherubim outside, but when she turned to look, she could see them all holding their own, and backing one another up, just as they had been when they had holed up together in the Manor

They relied on one another - Assisted one another, and fought for one another. Amity couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride.

_Crack!_

The noise came from the roof, and by the time Amity could even turn around, it had splintered off into a thousand smaller, but just as deafening sounds. It ended with a sickening thud, crashing just a few feet from her. 

One of the support beams that kept the roof up had been burned away by flames, and had collapsed and fallen. 

Right atop the only two staff that had remained by her side. 

Panic struck her. She froze. 

_Oh no._

_No no no!_

As soon as Amity could find it in her to move again, she dashed over, and knelt by the fallen beam, checking the staff and praying to whatever Gods might be out there that they hadn’t just died - The two staff had been the butler Beckham, and her schoolmate Bo, still just trying to get whatever money she could to help her fathers illness. 

Neither of them had taken the day off. None of the staff had taken the day off that Amity had offered - Full pay included - For reasons that were beyond her. 

And judging from their pulses, they were still alive - _Thank the Titan_ \- But they were knocked out cold. The beam seemed to have fallen more on their shoulders than anything, and the impact had jolted their heads backwards, combined with a heavy impact with the ground. They were out cold, and without question, needed a Healing Witch as soon as possible. 

Fire continued to creep all around the Witch - She only had so much time before the lobby would end up in flames! 

Not to mention the Cherubim - How long until they showed up again? 

She needed to move - _Now!_

Amity tried to lift the support beam, but quickly realised she didn’t have anything close to the strength needed to lift it alone - It was a large and heavy beam, and just being in _decent_ physical fitness wasn’t going to be enough here. She backed off, and cast another Abomination spell, and immediately instructed it to lift the beam. 

That was the moment the Cherubim arrived again, charging in through the open door, seeking out the lonely Witch, and the injured prey she was protecting - A very, very tempting target.

Jumping over to the other side of the support beam, Amity drew her sword and slashed two Cherubim down with a singular, swift motion. With a flick of the wrist, she cast another spell, creating an hand-shaped Abomination to emerge from the ground, ball into a fist, and swat whatever Cherubim came within it’s reach. Once cast, she swung again, hitting a third Cherubim with the weapon, in as many seconds. 

If the Cherubim got to Beckham and Bo, then not only would they be infected by the Rays, not only would they become a beacon for other Cherubim to try to feed from them, and not only would they become near impossible to defend - Once the Adult Cherubim mutated and came back, there was a very real chance that they could be mauled to death. 

So Amity fought like hell. Each movement precise, each spell cast with a purpose, and every action she made designed to maximise the amount of time her Abomination had to free Beckham and Bo. 

But she was one person. 

One person could only do so much. 

Swarms of Cherubim attacked her, and while she cut them down one by one, it was only a matter of time until either she made a mistake, or was outnumbered. 

Her mistake came when she missed the swing of her sword by barely an inch. 

The Cherubim that she had aimed for had been the one to have it’s Cherubim Ray charged and ready to fire. While she had gotten to it as quickly as she could, other threats had made her leave it until it was the final target left in the room. It had moved to dodge her swing, like every other Cherubim did, but Amity compensated for that. 

Just one inch made the difference - Be it her misjudging the distance, or the speed that the Cherubim moved at, or just pure luck on the part of the invader. It didn’t matter though - She missed. Her eyes locked with the Cherubim’s as it prepared to fire. 

And then, suddenly, it was sent _flying across the room._

It slammed against the floor, and bounced back up against a wall, where it combusted into dust. Amity followed it along its path until it burst into nothingness, and then looked back at the source. 

Her eyes shot wide open. 

“Amity! You alright?!” 

_Luz._

_It was Luz._

The Human looked like she’d just run a marathon - Heavy breathing, red flustered cheeks, and sweat running from her brow - In a word, exhausted. She was armed, with some kind of weapon that to Amity, just looked like a bulky, refined stick, probably some sort of weapon from the Human world. 

A huge smile - _That huge, amazing smile_ that Luz always had - Was plastered all over her face. If it wasn’t for the situation that they were both in, Amity would have let herself just stare stupidly at it. 

Right now though, the fact that she was now near Luz at all - And after everything that had happened?

_And that it was Valeween?_

Her heart felt like it both skipped a beat and froze at the same time. 

“Wh - Luz?!” Amity just staggered and looked at Luz for a few seconds. She barely had any idea how to react to her presence here - A heavy, _heavy_ series of conflicting emotions were colliding against one another in her mind. “What in the - What are you doing here?!” 

“I saw the fire from Bonesborough!” Luz answered quickly. “It looked really bad a-and I was worried! I - I know you said that you wanted me to stay away from you tonight but - “ 

“You _saw a fire_ , and _then_ decided to rush over here?!” Amity was torn between wanting to kiss Luz right then and there for being such an _absolutely incredible and caring soul_ , and wanting to scream at Luz for being so _unfathomably insane_ and disregarding her own basic safety for Amity’s sake. What ended up coming out of her mouth was, “Who sees a fire and immediately runs towards it?!” 

Hearing it out loud, it sounded more like the latter than the former. 

Even if the former was probably more representative. 

“We - We can talk about it later, okay?!” Luz looked pained, and Amity regretted even speaking, but before anything else could happen, Luz grabbed Amity’s wrist and began to drag her to the door, “We need to get to Bonesborough though, quickly, before any Cherubim get here!” 

“Luz, wait!” Amity ripped her arm from Luz’s grip. “We can’t!” 

“What?” Luz just gaped at the Witch. “Amity, this place is _literally on fire! What in the world would stop you from - ”_

“There are still people here!” 

“What?” 

Turning around and rushing back to the support beam, Amity showed Luz what she was talking about. 

When the Human saw Beckham and Bo, she gasped, and covered her mouth. “Oh, God, are they - “

“They’re fine!” Amity said quickly. “Well, they’re alive at least!” She noted that in spite of it’s best efforts, her Abomination hadn’t even really been able to move the support beam much at all. She shuddered at the thought of how heavy the beam was. 

Or what weight it supported that required such strength and mass. 

She cast another spell, to try to boost the strength of said Abomination - The creature grew in height and mass of its own, and when it made an effort to lift again, slight progress got made, in that it was at least able to move the beam a little bit. 

But not by a lot. It would take time to get the two Witches out from under it. 

“What do I have, what do I have…” Luz muttered to herself, shifting through her stacks of Glyphs quickly, trying to find something that would be able to help. She gritted her teeth, and looked at the fire, still encroaching. “Aaaaaah, If it wasn’t for the fire I could use Ice or Plant Magic to - “ ‘

The cracking screeches of the Cherubim filled the air again. 

More were on their way. 

Both Human and Witch froze, and looked at one another. A thousand thoughts running through their minds. Amity in particular felt a dread she hadn’t felt the entire night. This was the absolute worst case scenario. 

Amity steeled herself - No. It didn’t matter - It _couldn’t_ matter. Beckham and Bo needed help. 

Whatever else happened, she wasn’t going to just let them down. She wasn’t running away. 

Not this time. 

“Luz!” Amity yelled, and gripped her sword tighter. “You have Water Magic now, right?” 

“Y - Yeah?” 

“Then use it to put the fire out!” If they didn’t have the fire to worry about, then that would give them far more manoeuvrability, and they wouldn’t have a ticking clock to worry about either. 

“What - Amity, this entire place is on fire! It’ll just spread out again!” 

Not to mention the fact that this was fire mixed with Abomination goo - It didn’t work like a normal fire did, it had been merged with Magic. Luz was right. Amity did some quick maths and Magic Theory in her head. 

“Put out the fire nearest to us with water then!” She ordered. “Then you’re going to have to find the source of the fire - It’s on the west side of the building!” She then pointed up the stairs, along the balcony, going to the right-hand side of where Luz was looking. “Then you’re going to need to set off another fire right on top of it!” 

“I’m going to need to do _what?!”_

“It’s a Magic fire! It doesn’t work like a regular fire does! If you get rid of the point of origin and steal the Magical Energy from it, the rest of the fire will rescind back to the source it came from!” The buzzing of the Cherubim began to get louder and louder. “Use Water Magic to put out the fire, then use Fire Magic to start a new one! When the blue fire is out, put out the new fire, and that should fix everything!” 

“Put out the fire, then set it back on fire, and then put out the fire again?!” 

“Yes!”

Already moving, Luz began to retrieve the few Water Glyphs she had prepared for the night - Just in case - and putting out the nearest flames. “What’re you going to do?!” 

“Hold off the Cherubim!” 

“Are you - “ 

“I can handle them!” Amity at this point outright yelled at Luz, panic, stress and the weight of the situation finally getting to her. “I’ve handled them before you got here! It’s my fault that we’re even in this mess in the first place! I started the fire! I -“ She bit her lip. Even now, she couldn’t bring herself to say it. “ - I can handle them! It’s my fault, so I’m going to handle them! Just hurry up and put that fire out!” 

More than anything, Luz wanted to protest - But what the hell could she even begin to say? Amity was right in the most pragmatic sense of the word. Someone needed to put out the fire before it literally engulfed all of them, and someone needed to protect the two Witches that were trapped. 

There wasn’t really any other combination of ways that this could work - Someone would have to face the Cherubim alone. 

But that didn’t mean Luz had to like it. She remembered the fear and horror in Amity’s voice and expression when she first learned Valeween was here. She remembered the story Amity told her about how it had affected her from her younger years. 

_Now she was going to fight them alone?_ She was being brave…

...But Luz didn’t like it. 

And yet there was no other choice. Amity was the stronger Witch of the two of them. Gus had been right. 

_If anyone could handle the Cherubim alone, it would be her._

Quick as she could, Luz finished putting out the nearest fires around them with her Water Magic, and darted her way up the stairs of Blight Manor as fast as her legs would take her. On the balcony, she took a brief moment to look down at Amity. 

She was so glad she had come here - If she hadn’t, what would Amity have done? She was so glad Amity was okay. Even if Amity… Didn’t seem to be too happy to see her. 

_But she was okay_. And that was what was important. 

For a brief moment, Luz considered yelling ‘Good luck’ to her, or something along those lines - 

And that was the moment the Cherubim struck - Swarming the room, and beginning to attack and shoot their rays at everything that moved. Dozens upon dozens of them. 

Amity reacted, and struck and sliced, casted spells and cleaved Cherubim in half, and almost looked like she was performing an ar, at least to Luz. No movement was wasted. No act without purpose. And she fought like hell. 

Luz couldn’t tell if her heart was fluttering in amazement, or stopping ice dead cold in horror. 

She ran down the corridor, seeking out the fire's point of origin. 

The corridor probably wasn’t all that long, but engulfed as it was in flames, it felt like an endless abyss to look though. Luz hadn’t once been inside Blight Manor in all the time that she had known Amity - Her parents would never allow it, she had claimed. She didn’t have a point of reference to work with, and could only really go by instinct. 

The denser the fire, the more likely the point of origin, right? 

At least, she hoped that was how Magical fires worked. 

Covering her hands in Magical Water, Luz extinguished the fires ahead of her to make it safer for her to walk down the hallway. Charred wood and soggy ashes of what she guessed were once precious family materials were left as she moved, and she couldn’t help but worry about what would come after this. 

This place was Amity’s home. What… 

_…What was she going to do? Where was she going to live?_

If Eda would let her, Luz would offer her a place at the Owl House, at least until her parents found another place for them to live, or… Whatever would come next. If that was what Amity wanted to do. And Luz didn’t know if that was what Amity would want to do. 

After all, Amity still seemed angry at her. 

Not that it was hard for Luz to blame her anymore. She had seen what happened to Boscha. She knew that Amity had seen that as a child. And she had gone against Amity’s wishes for tonight, to stay away. Not that Luz regretted it now, but… 

_…Would saying that she was sorry even fix this?_

_Or had she crossed a line yesterday?_

_...Or had she crossed that line today?_

Suddenly, for a moment the entire building felt like it began to shake. Luz’s balance became worse, and she nearly fell onto the ground. And then it stopped. She glanced back down the path she had walked. Had that been Amity, or had it been something else? 

Still, she pressed on. 

Pushing deeper and deeper into the corridor, Luz began to wonder exactly how she was going to figure out what the ‘source of origin’ even was. Amity hadn’t specified exactly what had been the cause of the fire to her, so how was she supposed to know? 

Was it going to be obvious to her when she saw it, or was she going to have to do some sort of in-depth look into figuring it out? Or was she just supposed to guess? 

How the heck was she going to find it if she had to - 

Luz jumped back when she realised that she had been about to walk into what had become a giant hole in the corridor. The floor had collapsed, the wooden floor having burned and broken down, and everything had fallen into the ground floor. Just about everything past that point had collapsed too, but Luz hadn’t noticed for the flames that came from below. 

On the ground floor below though, there was... Something. 

A sort of weird, almost gelatinous ball of moving, purple fire, from which the rest of the blue flames would spur from. It was writhing around, almost like it was alive, though it very clearly wasn’t. What in the world… It almost looked like the… 

_...Remains of an Abomination?_

What in the heck had Amity _done_ before Luz had shown up?

Either way, somehow Luz had a feeling she’d found the point of origin for the flames. She quickly dipped into her bag, and produced a Water Glyph, and activated it. “Really hope you’re right about this, Amity.” She muttered, before she threw it down the hole, and took a step back, just to be safe. 

The sheer amount of steam that suddenly shot into the air was nearly enough to knock the wind right out of Luz’s lungs, and felt like she was standing in the middle of a gale-force storm. Everything went white for a few seconds as it rose, and Luz covered her eyes to protect them. The sounds it made were identical to that of an oven plate having ice water poured onto it, only seven times louder. It took a full thirty seconds for the steam to finally subside. 

When Luz peeked over the edge again, the writhing glop of purple goo had stopped moving, and was finally still. It was still surrounded by blue fire though, which would threaten to reignite it. Amity said that she had to use Fire Magic to reignite it. A Fire Glyph found its way into Luz’s hand, though she hesitated for a second, still not entirely certain how this made any kind of sense. On Earth, she’d heard that sometimes firefighters and some cultures would set off other, larger fires next to wildfires to help control and snuff them out, so it wasn’t like she was completely unfamiliar with the idea. She just wasn’t sure if that was how it worked with Magic. 

Then again, it wouldn’t be the weirdest way Magic had surprised her. And she trusted Amity’s judgement. 

She activated the Fire Glyph, and tossed it right on the purple goo. 

Immediately it caught fire again, but began to act something like - The best way that Luz could describe it just by looking at it was that it looked like a vortex. 

Blue flames began to swirl and sway, until they were dragged into the red flames, spiralling on their way like a whirlpool. Flames from the second floor in front of Luz, and from other corners of the house were dragged from their locations, and thrown into the red flames, like they were being pulled there by some sort of unseeable force.

How on Earth Magic interacted in this way, Luz had no idea. 

What she did know was that after maybe thirty seconds, it was over. 

No new blue flames came it’s way, and the fire had become fairly large in and of itself, but manageable by a single Water Glyph, which Luz threw in just a few seconds later. With a hiss, the fire found itself extinguished. And then, all at once, there was no longer any fire in the entirety of Blight Manor. 

No heat. No crackling. No burning. 

No anything. 

Luz let herself let out a long exhale, and leaned against the nearest wall. She took a couple of deep breaths, and really took in the fact that she had just fought a literal fire, and was still okay. Not a regular fire, mind, and she still had no clue how or why any of what she did worked, but it had, thanks to Amity, and - 

_Amity._

_She was still fighting._ Luz turned and dashed right back the way she had come. 

Another creak echoed throughout the corridor as Luz ran, but she didn’t pay it any mind. She needed to get back to Amity, and help however she could! 

As she got back to the balcony though, and looked down at the ground floor below, Amity was still holding out just fine. In the few minutes that Luz had been gone, somehow, Amity had been managing to hold back against the hordes of Cherubim. She looked more tired, but she was still fine. She bashed the hilt of her sword against one Cherubim and turned it to dust, before she noticed Luz briefly, before she carried on fighting, blocking a Cherubim Ray with her sword. 

Her Abomination had done its job too - The support beam that had been crushing the two staff members had been lifted, and moved aside, but both were still unconscious. Amity hadn’t had the time to move them, or do much of anything other than making sure that the Cherubim didn’t get anywhere near them. 

So Luz made a beeline right for them. 

Bat in hand, she swatted whatever Cherubim had decided to try to attack her as opposed to Amity, and ran right past her. For a second, they looked at one another, before Luz knelt down by the unconscious staff members. 

This time, she reached into her jacket, and produced a Rejuvenation Glyph, like the one she had used on Willow, and placed it on the older staff members forehead, and activated it. He responded almost immediately, one of his eyes opening up, and starting to look around, groggily, confused. 

“What the… Where am I?” He asked, clutching his forehead. “What happened?” 

“Beckham!” Amity yelled, casting another Abomination spell to handle the Cherubim for just a brief moment while she knelt by the butler. “Beckham, are you alright?” 

“Ms. Blight?” Beckham blinked. He took a brief look around the room, before it seemed like all the pieces finally clicked in his head. “Ms. Blight! What happened? I was - “ 

“You got knocked out - I’ll explain later!” Amity told him, though Luz couldn’t help but notice that she had what looked like a smile of relief on her face. “But I need you to pick up Bo so we can all get out of here! Can you do that for me?” 

“Ms. Bo?” Beckham blinked again, and Amity nodded her head in Bo’s direction. The man’s eyes widened, and he inspected the unconscious girl’s injuries. It seemed to spark in him a resurgence of energy, as he got onto his feet, and picked her up. “By the Titan - She needs a Healer, right away!” 

“I know - I’ll keep the Cherubim away from you while you make a run for it!” Amity instructed. “I’ll - “

“ _We_.” Luz told her, firmly. 

“Luz - “ 

“We’ll argue about it later - I’m not leaving you in here on your own, and that's that! We’ll cover this guy and then we’ll make sure we both get out of here!” 

Amity wanted to argue, but she could already tell that Luz had made up her mind. Arguing would be pointless, and they didn’t have the time to waste - Her Abomination was beginning to fall apart. She didn’t have the time to argue. 

She gritted her teeth. “Okay - We’ll hold back the Cherubim - Beckham, you get Bo outside, and run until you reach Bonesborough. Luz and I will be right behind you.”

“Ms. Blight, I can’t just leave you - “ 

“That is an _order_ , Beckham, and while you’re under the employ of the Blight family, you _will_ follow it!” 

Typically, that wasn’t something Amity liked to do, but like with Luz, there was no time to argue, and it always managed to get the message across when she needed the staff to do what she asked. And for a moment, Beckham paused. And then nodded. He would obey. 

And at that moment, the Abomination began to turn to nothing but slurry, and the Cherubim began to target the people there. 

Luz and Amity sprung into action, swinging their weapons at the nearest Cherubim towards them, and turning them into nothing but ash. Amity unleashed a salvo of self-contained fireball spells, careful not to allow any to catch fire to the nearby surroundings, while Luz activated a series of Ice Glyphs that she used to toss ice shards at incoming Cherubim. 

Where they could, their attacks were flashy and eye-catching. The goal was to make sure the Cherubim knew they were there long enough for Beckham to make his escape. 

It worked - Though this was easily both a good and a bad thing. 

As Cherubim flew in and got closer, Amity began to slash and stab with her sword, and Luz swung at incoming attackers with her bat, always aiming for the eye, finding it a nice, big, easy target that was particularly satisfying to bash inwards. 

Cherubim swarmed and surrounded the pair of them, attacking from each side and each angle. Both of them stood back-to-back, never too far away from the other, and making sure no Cherubim got close to the other. Spells and swings were switched between one another, as they towed the line between attracting the invading insectoids, and keeping them far enough at bay from one another, as well as keeping any from attacking Beckham and Bo. 

Beckham made a mad dash to the side of the lobby as the battle started up again, and then, once attention was fully on the Witch and the Human, made a similar run for the exit. With both his hands occupied with holding Bo, all he could do was rely on the two young girls to ensure that he wouldn’t be shot by the Cherubim. 

One time, he came close to being hit. 

But a fireball from Amity protected him, striking the Cherubim that had been about to blast him just a couple of seconds before it could fire.

And he was able to get out of the Manor, unharmed, and on his way to Bonesborough. With any luck, he would be able to meet up with the rest of the staff that were on their way to the city without getting hit, or just get to the city outright. It would be down to luck and his own ability to look after himself, but for right now, all Cherubim attention was focused on Luz and Amity - It was his best chance, and he was just going to have to take it. 

Then, everything happened at once then for Luz. 

“Okay!” Amity yelled. “Beckham’s out! We need to move! We - ” 

For the third time though, Luz heard the house began to creak. This time, it was far louder. 

_Far_ , far louder. 

Before she could even say anything though, to the side of her, she heard a loud - 

_Thud!!_

And the sound of shattering. She glanced at it - A chunk of concrete had fallen just a couple of feet from her. 

She looked up. 

Cracks were spreading all over the ceiling, and bits of plaster and dust were beginning to peel and give way, timber splintering, and chunks of brick and rock falling around them. Luz froze in place for a second - The fire. The support beam. 

It had weakened the structure of the Manor. The beam had been holding up the ceiling. And it had taken a while, but the fire had rotted away the other supports. 

_The ceiling was about to collapse._

“Am - Amity!” Luz yelled, turning to the Witch. “The ceiling! The ceilings gonna - “ Her sentence cut off when she saw. 

Amity was on the floor. 

Unconscious. 

Luz just stared for a moment. Then her breathing increased. “Amity? Oh, God, _Amity!!”_

The Cherubim had sensed the collapse, and had backed away, leaving the Human and the Witch alone. Getting onto her knees, Luz prepared to pick up Amity - She had done it before, and she could do it again - 

But around her, more and more of the ceiling began to fall. 

And then above her, the ceiling finally gave way. 

_It began to fall towards her._

On pure instinct, Luz did the only thing she could. 

She reached into her pockets, and produced a Wind Glyph, and a Plant Glyph. 

And she slammed them into the ground and activated them, with barely a second to spare.

The rocks landed atop the pair of them. 

**"Cherubim are known to possess some kinds of self-preservation instincts in certain situations - For example, they tend to seek preservation from fires, but do not seem too concerned with dodging attacks from Witches. The reason for this is unknown."**   
**\- Valeween for Witchlings, Chapter 8, page 81**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun duuuun.  
> Cliffhanger : D
> 
> Up next - What this has all been leading towards


	10. Don't Go

For all the Magical power that she had gained over the last six months, Luz’s abilities were still limited. She wasn’t a Witch, biologically speaking, and while she had helped to break down the perceived barriers between Witches and Humans, and prove that the difference wasn’t insurmountable, it did directly translate to a few things that affected her abilities. She hadn’t had years to play around with her skills. She hadn’t spent her entire life learning Magic in school. She didn’t even cast spells in the same way that other Witches did. Getting her spells to do exactly what she wanted to do… It took time. It took practice. And sometimes, it took luck. 

But she didn’t feel very lucky. Not when she got up off the ground, and with a splitting headache. 

As she got up, in spite of the overwhelmingly large temptation to just lay there and let whatever the cards of fate decided would happen to her happen, she was enveloped and surrounded by darkness, and a cold had come over her. The kind of cold that one only felt in the middle of the night when they discovered someone left a bathroom window wide open in the middle of winter, only about ten times more frigid and bone-reaching. The dark wasn’t much better either. She couldn’t even see her own hand in front of her face, and she felt deeply disoriented, and dizzy. Like she wasn’t… Fully there. It was difficult to explain. And a little sick too. How she even wound up here slipped her memory. 

For a genuine moment, she thought she had died. 

“Owww…” She hissed, reaching around the back of her head, and feeling at a throbbing pain there. The cause of what it was, she had no idea. There was no blood, thankfully. And pain meant that she was still alive, so, some good news there at least. 

Around her, she could hear the sounds of small rocks clattering against one another, and the sound of dust scattering against the ground as it landed in bunches and groups. There was also the sound of a gentle wind, but Luz couldn’t feel any wind against her skin. It was like it was separate from her. Like she was hearing it from the other side of a window. 

Where was she again? Thanks to the darkness, she couldn’t tell, and her eyes weren’t going to adjust to this for quite some time. If she only had… “...Oh, right! Light!” She said to herself, remembering that she did, in fact, have light. 

Feeling against her jacket, Luz reached to its inside, and grabbed a Light Glyph from the pocket she had chosen specially for holding her signature spell. Fumbling around in the dark for a moment, she eventually managed to hold it in front of her, and tapped the paper, casting her spell, and illuminating the place. For a moment, it was like she had just woken up, and turned her phone on, full brightness, in the middle of the night - It blinded and stung her for a moment, and she closed her eyes, opening them again slowly and only part-way, to take stock of where she was. 

Around her, she was in a sort of… The best way she could describe it was a cocoon. A combination of plants, brick, mortar, concrete and wood. The space was about seven meters wide in a full radius from the center, of which she was sat in the middle of. Thick and thin vines seemed to be what made up the structure of the cocoon, in that they were glue keeping it all together, and from falling on her head. It was similar to a support beam in that sense. Chunks of brick and mortar were all bunched together, the only reason they weren’t falling in on themselves was due to the force that the vines applied against them from either side. Bits of dust and soot fell in through the small, tiny gaps that emitted no light, making Luz suspect that they had fallen down a series of paths before ending up in the hollow inside. 

Memories flooded back into Luz’s mind - She had been disoriented, so it took her awhile to get back up to speed, but she remembered now. 

Getting to Blight Manor and finding Amity. The Cherubim swarm. The fire. Fighting alongside Amity to help her get her staff out. Amity getting hit by - 

Luz blinked, and got up onto her feet. “Amity!”

_ Where was she?!  _

Panic struck Luz for a moment that she might have been buried under the rubble that made up this shell of this cocoon as she scanned around, not seeing her. Not until she turned around. 

And there she was. Just behind her. 

Still unconscious. 

The Witch was laid on her back, as she had been before the cocoon had been formed, with her eyes closed. Her expression was relaxed, and so were her mouth and jaw, forming a gentle, tiny o-shape, from which breathing could be heard, at a soft, steady, regular pace. Her hair-band had fallen out, so her hair was down, and flopped around everywhere, like it was in a state of severe bed-head. She could almost be mistaken for being in a deep, peaceful sleep - Were it not for the trail of blood that was dripping down her face from her forehead. 

A nasty, nasty cut had sliced open her pale skin, and allowed blood to flow down, split at her nose, past her eyes and down the sides of her cheeks. Some dripped, and got into her green hair. She looked a mess - But aside from that, she seemed to be free of any obvious bodily injuries. No limbs facing weird directions, no gaping wounds, and she was still very much alive. 

For just a moment, Luz allowed herself to sigh at the fact that the worst case scenario hadn’t occurred, though she didn’t remain calm for long. Amity was still injured, and Luz had no idea how long they had been in here. Or if anyone knew that they were here at all. 

She would have to look after Amity. 

Of all the Magic that she knew though, Healing wasn’t one of the easiest of the Tracks to learn new spells in. It wasn’t like stitches or anything like that reformed into the shapes of Glyphs that she could learn from - Though she was secretly thankful that wasn’t the case. She only knew a couple of Glyphs for it - One of which required the use of medicinal herbs that she didn’t have to hand. The other, her Rejuvenation Glyph. 

Rejuvenation wasn’t even technically a Healing Spell. Not in the literal sense of the term, anyway. It was a spell that sped up the process of healing, not outright heal itself. It was why it had given Willow a boost of energy, and helped that butler wake up sooner. It depended on the extent of the injury, and how long it would naturally take a person to heal without it. It was considered one of the absolute most basic healing spells. 

Better than nothing though. 

Plus, she had learned a few things about how to handle a situation like this from the Healing Track. 

First, Luz slid off her hoodie, and used it to gently clear up the blood from Amity’s face. She gently dabbed at the cut itself, until she was confident that it had stopped bleeding. Once clean - Or as clean as she could get it though that method, Water Magic came next, and she carefully cleared away any dirt from the cut. Now that it was clear, there was a nasty bruise that accompanied it. 

Something had hit her in the face. That was probably what had knocked her unconscious in the first place. It must have been something from the ceiling. Maybe that had been why she had suddenly gone so silent in the middle of the fight. 

Next, Luz gently laid Amity’s head on her lap. For a moment, she just watched Amity, and thought about… How lucky it was that she had spotted the first from Bonesborough. How lucky it was that they had gotten back to the walls when they did. How lucky she had arrived here when she did. Would… 

...Would Amity even still be here if she hadn’t? Could she have found a way? Amity was amazing, but… Could… 

...Could Luz even imagine a Boiling Isles without Amity in it? 

A Rejuvenation Spell was placed onto the young Witch’s forehead, and Luz was very, very careful when she activated it. The paper turned into Magical Energy, just like it had with Willow and the butler, and was absorbed into their bodies. A gentle glow followed, better noticeable in the darkness they were surrounded in rather than the light of night or day, before it subsided very quickly. If the ground below them wasn’t made of wood, or she had something she could draw with, Luz would have made the Glyph larger, and on the ground. But she only had what she had to work with. Her Glyphs, her knowledge, and her own two hands. 

Both of which held Amity close to her. 

...Luz couldn’t. 

She’d asked the question before. If she could imagine a Boiling Isles without Amity. If it was possible for her to imagine this place without one of the people here who meant so much to her. 

On Earth… Luz wasn’t anyone. Not really. She was the weird kid. The kid no one liked. The kid it was cool to make fun of. Pick on. Write ‘Luzer’ on her locker every other day. Mock. Hide her things. She didn’t have friends. No one to side with her. To back her up, or even just tell her that they were sorry things were like that. To spend time with, talk about… Anything. And Luz had just… Grown to accept it. To deal with it. To put a bright smile on the face of it, and just lose herself in her fantasies. 

When it got to be too much, no one ever saw the tears. 

Who would care, anyway?

...It wasn’t like that here though. She felt like a new person here. A better person. Like a person who was understood. Who was accepted, not in spite of her oddities, but in part because of them. People were nice to her. They treated her like she was… A person... 

_ Like she existed.  _

In a world where Humans were despised, Luz had never felt more Human in her life.

Willow, Gus, Eda, King.. Amity… Luz couldn’t imagine her life without any of them anymore. She didn’t want to. But Amity… 

Amity held a special place in that mindset. And Luz.. Luz didn’t know why. 

She didn’t  _ want _ to imagine a Boiling Isles without Amity. Because that wouldn’t be the Boiling Isles anymore. It would be… Something else entirely. 

“Estarás bien.” She whispered. Her hand ran through Amity’s hair, gently, carefully. “Te tengo… Estarás bien…” 

_ You’ll be okay. I’ve got you. You’ll be okay.  _

Truthfully, she didn’t know if she was talking to Amity or to herself. 

“...Te quiero.” She whispered, even softer, directly to her friend.

In the context she meant them, the way she was raised to use them, they were words that one only said to the closest of friends. To the people one was closest to. 

Because they had meaning. They were powerful. And they were as close to the words that Luz knew how to describe how she felt about Amity. How she saw Amity. They were words she... Probably should say to Amity. 

Because Amity deserved to hear them. Even if they didn’t make sense to her. 

Because Luz meant it. 

She bent down, and placed her forehead against Amity’s.

“Te quiero…”

_ I love you. _

* * *

_ “That's so… Weird.” Amity smirked, and tilted her head. She looked at the nearest tree, and tried her hardest to imagine it. “You’re not joking, right?”  _

_ “No way! I swear!”  _

_ “Like… My hair green, or darker green?”  _

_ “Depends on the tree.” Luz answered. “Some are light green like your hair is, but some are a lot darker green.”  _

_ “You said not all of them were green though?”  _

_ “Nope - Some of them are red, like a lot of the plants here. ”The Human explained. “It depends on where you are on Earth - There are some places with trees with pink leaves!”  _

_ Amity paused for a moment, and glanced up above them. The pink leaves of their Grom tree swayed with a gentle breeze. “That’s unusual, is it?”  _

_ “It’s unusual where I’m from.”  _

_ Another look at the red leaves on the trees, and Amity tried really, really hard to imagine them being green - But it was such an… Odd colour to imagine that she struggled. It was like trying to imagine the ocean being blue and not purple - It didn’t make any sense!  _

_ “Maybe that’s why Witches don’t visit the Human Realm all that often.” She said, an eyebrow raised. “Because you Humans are way too weird for us.”  _

_ “I choose to take that as a compliment!”  _

_ The Witch allowed herself to laugh. _

_ Life had been… Interesting, over the last couple of days, Amity noted. A lot had happened, and there were… A lot of changes.  _

_ A lot of them.  _

_ Just three days ago, Luz had faced off against the Emperor. Lilith now lived with Eda and Luz in the Owl House, and Eda had lost her ability to do Magic. Now she used Glyphs, the same as Luz, and was still getting used to them. She kept forgetting that she couldn’t flick her wrist anymore to cast a spell, which had resulted in at least one amusing situation Amity had been subject to, which involved Eda trying to slam a door in a dramatic fashion, twirling her finger, standing there until she realised, and then trying to shut it by throwing a cooking pot at it. _

_ The news that Luz was okay after her confrontation with  _ the freaking Emperor  _ was news that Amity could not have been happier to hear. It had been on her mind ever since she saw the news broadcast, and saw the hooded figure that could only be Luz fighting to rescue the sentenced Wild Witch.  _

_ For a few days, Luz had laid low, but Amity kept her informed as best as she could, telling her what the news said, what everyone at Hexside was saying, and making trips to the Owl House, still in her cast from the Grudgby match with Boscha, to make sure that she was okay. And thank the Titan, she was fine.  _

_ Better than fine, actually. She seemed to have more energy than Amity remembered her having. And it was wonderful to see - She had been worried that after facing someone like Emperor Belos, Luz might have been shaken up beyond recognition, but it almost seemed like the opposite had happened. _

_ The day that her cast was taken off and she was given the go ahead to be up and about again, Luz had asked Amity if she wanted to hang out - A question Amity was more than happy to answer positively to.  _

_ After being cooped up in her room for days, she probably would have said the same if Edric and Emira asked, if she were being honest.  _

_ It being Luz to ask though was amazing! _

_ Overwhelmingly though, the majority of the day had been her talking about Earth, and telling Amity about everything that she missed about her home Realm, and the things she loved about Earth. Explaining concepts to her, like what a car was supposed to be - As far as Amity could tell, it was some weird metal… Unicorn thing? - A weird cartoon format that she claimed came predominantly from an island in her home Realm, and weird tidbits, like how trees and plants were primarily not red on Earth, but green, somehow.  _

_ It sounded more like another planet than it did another Realm. Although now that Amity thought about it, the difference there would have been fairly semantic.  _

_ And Amity listened to all of it, genuinely interested in the things that Luz had to say. What the Human world was like, how it worked, what made everything work - This was all stuff that Hexside didn’t really teach, and what little they did learn was mostly speculation. Luz’s insights were interesting.  _

_...But at the same time it was… Difficult to hear.  _

_ It reminded Amity that one day, Luz was going to have to go back to the Human world. And that she missed it. _

_ So when that time came, she wouldn’t hesitate.  _

_ Thinking about that inevitable day… It hurt a lot. Luz had only been here for a little over a month, but she had helped change nearly everything about Amity’s life that she could, and affected her in so many ways. Between her and Willow’s relationship, Grom, and everything else, Luz had become such an invaluable part of Amity’s life. The way that she made Amity feel at any point she was around the Human was… Electrifying was the only word she could think of.  _

_ And one day soon, she would go.  _

_ And Amity didn’t know if she would ever come back... _

_ … Of all the people Amity could have gotten a crush on, it was the Human who was here on a time limit.  _

_...And Amity wouldn’t change that. Even if she could somehow choose who she ended up getting a crush on, it would have still been Luz. Because Luz was incredible. She was genuinely one of the most amazing people Amity had ever met. Even if she had the entire Boiling Isles to choose from, even knowing that Luz was here on a time limit, Amity would still pick her.  _

_ She wasn’t too proud enough to admit to herself at least that she had it bad for Luz.  _

_ “...Earth sounds… Interesting.” Amity said, honestly. Interesting being the only word she could think of because of how otherworldly it sounded. “You must miss it a lot.”  _

_ “There are… Some things I miss about it.”  _

_ “I’d… I’d like to visit it someday.”  _

_ “Oh my gosh yes!” Luz beamed. ‘I can show you all the cool places I used to go to! I could - I could show you all the ways Earth is different to the Boiling Isles! You could meet my… My…”  _

_ Luz’s voice began to trail off, and the enthusiasm that Luz had been full of just seconds ago suddenly seemed to fade away. Her whole body seemed to relax and slump into… Nothing, and she looked away from Amity, facing outward to the Boiling Seas.  _

_ In that moment, Amity realised something was wrong. “Lu - Luz?”  _

_ Luz didn’t say anything. And for a moment, Amity began to seriously wonder if she had somehow upset or offended the Human with her idea of visiting her Realm - Maybe it was some kind of Human custom or - Or something?  _

_ “A - Are you okay?” Amity asked, feeling herself gulp. “I - I’m sorry, I - I didn’t mean to upset you - “  _

_ “I destroyed the portal, Amity.”  _

_ Amity blinked. The words look a minute to process.  _

_ “You…. You did what? “ _

_ “I destroyed the portal.” Luz repeated. Her voice was slow, and deeper than usual. She spoke slower. Her energy had gone. “When I was fighting Belos. He… He wanted it. I - I don’t know what for, but giving him the portal was the only way that I could save Eda, so I gave it to him, but I couldn’t just let him have the portal to Earth, so I… I blew it up.”  _

_ When Luz turned to Amity, there was a smile on her face.  _

_ The most fake smile Amity had seen in her entire life.  _

_ “...I can’t go back home.”  _

_ “Luz…”  _

_ “I… I don’t know if there’s another way for me to get home. Eda said she’d look into it, but… That portal was the only way she had to get to my world. Lilith doesn’t know anything about… Any of that situation, and I….” She paused for a moment. “... I’m stuck here for a while.”  _

_ “I…” Amity felt herself freeze. “I - I didn’t… I didn’t know. I… I’m sorry Luz.”  _

_ “I didn’t tell you. It’s not your fault.” Luz offered another smile, another horrid, fake smile that Amity couldn’t bear to see. “It - It’s not that big a deal, really! I like it here, so it’s - It’s not like it’s the worst thing in the world! I can spend more time learning Magic here!”  _

_ That fake smile spread wide.  _

_ “I - I’ve told you before how people used to treat me there, right? It’s not like I’m gonna miss that much! I like school here too! And - “  _

_ “Luz.”  _

_ Amity’s voice was firm, and her expression was too. But at the same time, she didn’t allow it to be nothing but cold. Luz was putting on a brave face. The little wavers in her voice gave it away. And she didn’t stammer on her words like this either.  _

_ She was holding it in. Pretending that things were fine.  _

_ When they weren’t.  _

_ For a moment, Luz looked like she was about to continue to insist that she was okay, that Amity was worrying over nothing, that she was fine.  _

_ But her face fell when she saw the look Amity was giving her.  _

_ An expression that said nothing other than ‘You helped me. Let me help you.’  _

_ Tears came after that, before Luz even realised that they were even falling down her cheeks. When she realised, she quickly tried to cover them up. “I - I don’t, that’s…”  _

_ And then, Amity just hugged her. It was still a gesture Amity didn’t fully understand, but Luz seemed to like them.  _

_ The tears began to flow freely then, as Luz clung onto Amity as tightly as she could, burying her head into the other girls shoulder, and for the first time since the portal had been destroyed, and the reality of her situation had begun to sink in for the young Human, as she realised she was cut away from everything she’d ever known, away from the only person back on Earth who cared about her. For the first time since all of it sunk in, Luz allowed herself to cry. _

_ Days of angst that she’d kept covered up by putting on the acade of being happy and joyous and excited and everything else she always seemed to be, it all finally dropped, as Luz just bawled her heart out into Amity’s shoulder.  _

_ She just cried.  _

_ Amity just held the Human, letting her cry. Letting her get it all out of her system. Letting it all just… Flow out. She held her close. In any other circumstance, it would have given her a heart attack.  _

_ But as she did it all, it made her sick that more than anything else, she felt… _

_ …Relief. _

* * *

Somehow, Amity already knew that she was awake, even though she didn’t open her eyes. Like she could almost sense her surroundings, and was aware, at least a little, that there wasn’t anything around her. She didn’t hear anything, nor did she really feel much of anything. Not now, anyway. 

Her eyes didn’t open though. They were heavy, and she felt exhausted. And she was weirdly comfortable in that way that someone could only be comfortable in if they had been laying somewhere for long enough. Either that or the mere prospect of moving an inch made just laying wherever she was eternally more appealing. Amity had no idea. All she knew was that she didn’t want to move, and didn’t even feel like she could right now. Her bones felt as heavy as her eyelids. 

So for a couple of minutes, she just laid still. Not moving. Not doing… Much of anything. It was a weird state to be in. She didn’t even think, not really. 

Thoughts came to her. 

The dream - No, the memory of when Luz told Amity that she had destroyed the portal home though, that replayed in her mind. And she couldn’t do anything to stop that. It just played on repeat, in her mind. 

_ Pain. _

When Amity began to finally stir, the first thing that she felt was pain - A horrid, throbbing pain that made it feel like her head was splitting open. Her eyes clenched even more firmly shut, and she made an involuntary noise, sucking in hair through her teeth.

“Fffff…. Ow…” Her hand clutched her forehead, and her teeth gritted. She needed to figure out what was going on. What had happened? Where in the heck was - 

“Amity?” A gentle, familiar voice broke what had until this point been silence. “Amity, are - Are you awake?” 

She opened her eyes. 

And she saw Luz.

Looking down on her. 

“L...Luz?” Suddenly, another sharp jolt of pain shot through Amity, and her eyes closed firmly again. “Owww!” 

“Are you alright?! Where does it hurt?” 

_ “Everywhere.” _

The pain in her forehead as it turned out was just the start of things. Her entire body felt like it was in agony, like whatever had hit her had sent a shockwave all throughout her body, but it hadn’t caught up to her until just now. 

“U - Um, here, here! Hold on!” Luz retrieved another Rejuvenation Glyph, placed it on Amity’s forehead, and activated it. The Magical Energy was absorbed into Amity’s body, helping to ease and heal whatever injuries the Witch had suffered. It still hurt. But it was a tiny bit better. 

It was better than nothing. At least Amity could move herself a bit now without feeling like every pain receptor she had was on fire. 

She could let out a small sigh. “...Thanks.” 

A similar sigh escaped the Human. “Anytime.” 

For a moment, a brief pause. 

“So… What… Happened?” Amity asked through a groan. She kept her eyes firmly closed, purposely. “I… I just remember we were fighting Cherubim and then…” 

“You got knocked out.” Luz told her. “A piece of the ceiling must have hit you.” 

“The ceiling?” 

“It collapsed. I guess the support beam was holding it up, and the fire weakened the rest of the structure or… Something. I think, I don’t know. It collapsed, and I used Wind Magic to stop it from crushing us, and Plant Magic to make this little cocoon we’re in. I uh… Tried to heal you the best I could, but there’s only so much Healing Magic I know how to do.” Luz felt guilty that she didn’t have any better news to share, or that she couldn’t be of any more help for Amity’s condition.

Everything she knew about Healing Magic and First Aid, she had applied to Amity, but clearly, none of it worked, or even seemed to lessen the amount of pain Amity was in by much. 

“Does… Anyone know we’re here?” Amity asked. 

Another pause. 

“...I - I don’t know.” Luz admitted, like she was ashamed. “I think Beckham - That butler guy? I think you said his name was Beckham? I think he managed to get away from the Manor, but… I don’t know if he got to Bonesborough.” 

Guilt and anxiety made itself known in Amity’s stomach.

It was her fault he had ever ended up in that situation in the first place. He had been planning to be alongside his husband and wife at the walls from what she had been told from him, all of them there because they felt it their civic duty to protect the town. Service was important to them. They took pride in it. They had been left waiting for him, and now Amity didn’t know if he would even be able to get to them. All she could do was hope Beckham was okay. 

And Bo too - Bo had been with him. All she’d been trying to do was support her father, sick as he still was. She hadn’t needed to get mixed up in all this. Another person she’d let down because of her own screw-ups...

Luz continued. “I tried to get another message out - I tried with my Scroll. I tried to call Eda, but the call wouldn’t go through, so I sent a message to her, and Willow, and Gus, but… I - I don’t know they got through, or if they saw them or… Or anything. I sent them… A while ago.” 

“...How long is a while ago?” 

“...About five hours.” 

“Five…!” She’d been unconscious for  _ that long? _

She would have gotten onto her feet right then and there, if the sound of small, miniature thudding didn’t then catch her attention. A sound that she hadn’t heard before now - It was very, very faint, but with no other noise, not even wind to help cancel it out, Amity could just manage to hear it. 

“...It’s the Cherubim.” Luz told her. She glanced up and looked at the opaque dome they were in, like she half-expected to see one bursting through any second now. “I guess they know we’re in here.” 

The noises were a bit like how Amity had heard them when they arrived on the Isles - Thudding and thwacking into the ground without rhyme or reason, or even really any sense, given that they could fly.

A Cherubim flashed in her mind. 

She tried to block it out.  _ Those damned horrid things... _

“H - Have they been doing this the entire time I’ve been out?” 

“Nah. They showed up a couple of hours ago. I think the original bunch left when the ceiling gave in, and these are new ones. I don’t think they can get through, but they’re just gonna keep trying I guess.” The Human shrugged. There was a brief pause in the conversation, before she spoke again. “...It actually kinda reminds me of listening to rain back on Earth, actually. It’d be relaxing if it wasn’t… Y’know. Terrifying.” 

_ Earth…  _

In spite of the pain, Amity managed to get herself to sit up. When she looked back at where she had had her head rested, she realised that Luz had placed her head on her lap - A realisation that only made Amity’s heart beat harder.

And sharpen the pain. 

From the corner of her eye, she saw Luz’s jacket was tossed aside, next to a small fire that Luz had made to keep them both warm, and that the thing was stained with blood. Luz wore a vest underneath - Which didn’t do Amity’s heart, or the pain any favours either - And the Witch couldn’t see any cuts or bruises on Luz’s body either. 

The blood was hers. Luz had spent the last five hours doing nothing but looking after her, hadn’t she? 

...She looked away from Luz. Gratitude and regret being too much to bare to even look at her now. 

For a short while, no one said anything. They just sat there in relative silence, only the sounds of Cherubim trying to break in, and the low, gentle humming of the ball of light that came from Luz’s Magic, and the gentle crackles of the fire filled the inside of the cocoon. 

Luz shifted uncomfortably, and felt her chest ache. Wrapping them in this cocoon had been all she could do to make sure that they were safe, but after everything that had happened over the last two days, she couldn’t blame Amity for not being thrilled at - 

“...I’m sorry.” 

“Huh?” Luz reacted automatically, looking at the back of Amity’s head. It had been quiet, but audible.

Incredibly soft. Incredibly anxious. 

“I’m sorry.” Amity repeated, but she didn’t look at Luz. She couldn’t. “This… This whole mess is my fault.” 

“Wh… What do you mean? None of this is your fault.” 

“I… I’m the one who yelled at you, Luz. I’m the one who pushed you away. I’m the one who told you to stay away from me tonight. If I hadn’t done that, if I had just… Gone along with the original plan to meet with you, Gus and Willow, none of this would have happened…”

“Valeween came early. The original plan wasn’t airtight anyway. That’s not your fault, Amity. That was just bad luck.” Luz shifted closer to the Witch. “None of this is your fault. I… I’m the one that should be apologising. I’m the one that screwed this up.” 

In spite of the pain of moving, Amity glanced over her shoulder towards Luz. 

A mistake. 

“I should have listened when you said that you wanted me to leave you alone tonight.” Tears were already visible in the corner of the girls eyes, and the effort it took to keep her voice level was a clear strain. Amity wanted nothing more than to reach out and wipe away the tears. Luz didn’t need to act so tough for her sake. “I - I shouldn’t have pushed you on that. I should have - Have listened and just…” She sniffled, and took a second before she said anything else. Her head hung to the ground, not able to look at Amity now that Amity was looking back. “...Y - You didn’t owe me anything. I… I understand why you’re mad at me…” 

“I’m not mad at you.” That was easy a reply to give as any Amity had ever given a person. Luz looked at her again, and Amity averted her eyes. “You… You were only trying to help - “ 

“I should have minded my own business.” 

“...You didn’t mind your own business when you helped Willow with Abominations. You didn’t mind your own business after our Witches Duel. You didn’t in the library incident. You didn’t with me and Willow. You didn’t at Grom. Or with Willow and Boscha - “ 

“And I made all of those situations worse!” 

“You made them  _ better. _ You made them so much better, Luz. Willow isn’t miserable anymore. You tried to help me. You tried to stop Edric and Emira. Me and Willow are friends again. Boscha keeps a wide berth from Willow and… And you… You made Grom a - a thousand times easier to deal with. You were willing to take my place there for me and…” Amity forced herself to stop. “...Every time you get involved, you try to help, and you try to make things better.” 

“I didn’t make things better this time…” 

“That’s because of me. Because I - I pushed you away... Because I was scared.” 

Another throb of pain surged throughout Amity’s body. She gritted her teeth as hard as they would grit, refusing to make any noise. Not now. 

“I… I saw what happened. To people who were shot by Cherubim.” Luz told her, and her gaze fell to the floor again. “I - I saw how badly it can affect people. I don’t… I don’t blame you for being scared of them. I am, now. I  _ hate _ them.” The people she’d seen affected in town, and hell, even Boscha, all flashed briefly through her mind. “I thought I understood, ‘cause of that book I read, but I didn’t. I didn’t understand how bad it got for people. How badly it can affect their lives. I - I just…” 

Amity didn’t say anything. Luz bit her tongue. Amity deserved to know why, but saying it out loud was… 

...Shameful. Another batch of tears rolled down her cheeks. 

_ How could she have even begun to presume she understood Valeween before today?  _ Even thinking she understood the first thing about this was just… 

She hadn’t had a clue. Not really.

“... I… I guess I just… I just thought that the reason you didn’t want to be around me was because you were worried a Cherubim would make you say something like… I don’t know. That you didn’t trust me enough to tell me what you thought and felt towards me.” 

The pain struck Amity again. 

“You’re like… One of the best… And only friends that I’ve ever had, Amity. You… You mean the world to me. A - And you know how it is in books and cartoons, right? Friends don’t keep secrets - A - And I guess the idea that you did was…” She trailed off again. She didn’t know how to say it properly. “...It doesn’t work that way though. Not really. You… You have things you want to keep to yourself. And I shouldn’t have pushed. You don’t owe me that. You don’t owe me anything.” 

“...I owe you everything, Luz.” 

A pause followed, as Amity turned to face Luz. 

“I owe you every - O-Oooow!” Amity wrapped an arm around herself, like grabbing hold would somehow ease the pain, while another reached for the cut in her forehead, which felt like the center-point and source of the pain. 

“Amity!” Luz got closer to her and applied another Rejuvenation spell onto the Witch.  _ What in the world had hit her?  _

It seemed to soothe the pain a bit, but it was abundantly clear that Amity was still in a great deal of pain. That Rejuvenation spell was the last one that Luz had to offer - She had used them all up trying to heal Amity’s wounds while she was unconscious.

“You - You should rest.” Luz told her, panicking slightly. She didn’t have any paper or drawing materials to make another Glyph. She hadn’t expected to be caught in a situation  _ quite like this,  _ and had assumed if it got this bad, other Healers would be nearby. “We - We can talk more about this once this is all over - “ 

“My life is worse when you’re not in it, Luz.” 

Before Luz could process that, another surge of pain shot throughout Amity - Made her whole body jolt and twitch, and made her teeth grit so hard against one another, that she felt like her gums were going to start bleeding. 

_ “Oooow!” _

“A - Already?!” Luz felt her heart sink - Whatever was wrong with Amity, it’s as rending Rejuvenation spells more and more weak the more they were applied. 

Without more Glyphs, Luz didn’t know what to do. 

All she could  _ think _ to do was to apply what little she knew about shock to the pained girl - That had to be an issue, right? Pain caused shock, right? 

Quickly she grabbed her jacket, and covered Amity in it, using it as a shock blanket. She wrapped it around the Witches shoulders, trying to make sure that she was as comfortable and convince her that she was as safe as she could. It was all that she could think to do. 

That, and curse herself to being so  _ stupid as to not bring spare paper and drawing material! _

“It - It’s gonna be okay, Amity.” Luz tried to assure her, and herself, if she could manage it. “We just gotta hold out here for a while, wait for someone to come get us, or until morning comes, but we’ll be okay! Just… Just hold on, okay?” 

It was a long shot, but Luz quickly checked her Scroll - There wasn’t any indication that the messages she had sent to Eda, or Willow, or anyone else had gotten them yet. 

No missed calls, no anything. 

A noise of frustration came from the back of her throat, and she sent more messages, telling them to please, for the love of God, hurry up. 

There was nothing else she could even do! 

“...I wasn’t going to tell you to stay away from me.” 

Luz blinked. “Huh?” 

“Back… When we had our fight. And I told you I wanted you to stay away from me. That… That wasn’t what I was going to tell you at all, Luz. I… I told you that because I was afraid, and I was being selfish.” 

“What… Were you going to tell me then?” Luz leaned in, with interest. Clearly, she wasn’t going to just rest. If she wasn’t going to rest, then maybe talking was the only thing that could keep Amity distracted. If she was talking, she wasn’t thinking about the pain she was in, right? Or at least was thinking about it less. 

...And Luz would confess to curiosity, if she were being totally honest. And if Amity wanted to talk about it, then...

“...I was…” Amity bit on her lips. She didn’t know what she was doing. Her instincts screamed at her to stop. But the words, they just… 

...They just left on their own. 

“...I was going to tell you that…” 

Amity gulped. 

“...That I’m in love with you.” 

Luz’s eyes opened up, and suddenly, there was no noise. Not her own breathing. Not the Cherubim thudding against the cocoon. Not the fire, or the light. Not even her own heart made a sound. 

She hadn’t misheard that. That, she was absolutely sure of. 

_ Amity had just said that she was in love with her.  _

But that was… 

_ That…  _

_ Amity was in love with her? _

“You… You’re… You’re what?...” She couldn’t even think of anything else to say. She knew exactly what Amity had just said to her, but the rest of her body hadn’t caught up to the message from her brain yet. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper. 

_ W...What? _

“...I’m in love with you, Luz.” Amity repeated. She couldn’t look the Human in the eye. But the words wouldn’t stop now. They couldn’t stop. “I love you so much it hurts to even think about. Just… Look at you, Luz. You didn’t have to be here. You didn’t have a reason to be here. Not after how I treated you and how I’ve been ghosting you. But you’re here anyway. You’re a Human doing Magic. You’re the kindest person I know. You’re just… So you. You’re this authentic, kind… Incredible person… How couldn’t I be?” 

No words could bring themselves to leave Luz’s now ajar mouth. She couldn’t even think what words to put out there.

“I… I didn’t want you to hear about it because of a Cherubim, so I was going to… Tell you back then. On my terms. But I… I couldn’t do it. Because I was - “ 

Another jolt of pain ran throughout Amity’s body - It made her flinch and tense up, and let out an audible cry. 

This time though, tears came after. 

Lots of them. 

“...I can’t be the person you think I can be.” 

Dozens of questions were shooting through Luz’s mind now. She didn’t even know where to start. The idea that Amity was - That couldn’t be right, right? Where was this even coming from? Why was she even saying this now? 

Was it true? Or was Amity delirious from pain at this point? 

No. Luz knew that wasn’t the case. That wasn’t how that worked. People didn’t… Pour their hearts out like this because of pain from an injury, 

_ But - But what? How? Why?  _

“Am - Amity, what - I don’t -“ 

_ “ _ You don’t understand Luz _ \- I can’t change.”  _

All Luz could do was watch as more and more tears began to flow down Amity’s face, but she didn’t let the Human see her eyes, hidden as they were behind her unkempt hair. But more and more flowed, and one of Amity’s hands covered one of her eyes. She was sobbing now. 

It wasn’t just the pain making her cry anymore. 

If it ever had done. 

Luz wanted to reach out. To wipe away the tears. To hug the girl. To offer some sort of support or sympathy.

But she didn’t dare. She didn’t know how. 

Not without making things worse. 

“You… You always said I could change. That if I tried hard enough, that if I made amends, I could become a better person… But I - I can’t, Luz! I  _ cannot change! _ After everything we’ve been through, after everything that's happened, everything you’ve done for me, I - I’m still the same, stupid, selfish Witch I always have been! That I always will be! A - And I’m sorry, Luz! I’m - I’m sorry that I can’t stop being this way! I’m sorry I can’t stop! I - “

Amity had kept her eyes firmly focused on the ground. 

“ I - “ 

Now she finally looked up at Luz, her golden eyes meeting Luz’s brown ones. The sadness in them was overwhelming. 

But there was something else too. 

“...I….”

One hand grabbed Luz’s shoulder, and clung to it, tightly. Her other hand left her face, and grabbed Luz’s hand. Red hot tears still streamed down her face. 

And Luz finally saw. 

Amity’s golden eyes began to change. 

_ They began to glow bright blue.  _

_ _

_ “...Don’t go.” _

Through the sobs, Amity’s voice was little more than a whisper. 

“Please don’t go. I don’t… I don’t want you to go back to Earth.” 

Amity sobbed. 

There it was. 

What she was most ashamed of. 

“I… I want you to stay here. I - I need you to stay here! I… When you told me the portal was destroyed - When you cried, and when I hugged you, a - all I felt was relief! Because that meant you couldn’t go home! A - And that’s so, so, so selfish of me, and I know that, and I know I should be supporting you no matter what, but that's the truth, Luz! I want you to stay here! With Willow, and Gus, and Eda, and... And me.” Her voice had turned into something of a shout now, but it was the only way she could speak - The lumps in her throat wouldn’t let her whisper anymore. “I - I couldn’t tell you how I felt when you told me you wanted to find a way back to the Human world - I - I couldn’t! I just couldn’t Luz!....

She choked on her words for a moment. 

“...Just listen to me, Luz. Listen to what I’m even saying here. That I’m in love with you, but that I want you to stay trapped here, just because you being here makes me happy? What kind of a person am I? I got scared when you told me you wanted to find a portal home... And I took it out on you! And you - You still came to help me.” 

More sobs escaped her. 

“You told me how bad things were back home, how people treated you… I don’t… I don’t understand why you’d want to go back. That world doesn’t deserve you. You… Deserve… Everything, Luz. You deserve the entire world. There’s no one else like you… And I can’t stop feeling like this about you. You deserve someone who...” 

Her head hung again. 

“I’m sorry…” 

She forced her mouth shut. But sobs still escaped her. 

Everything she was ashamed about. Everything that she was afraid of Luz knowing about her feelings for her. Everything she hated herself for feeling. It was all out now. All there in the open. 

The selfish coward that she was was on full display for Luz to see. For her to understand. The real her. Not the Amity that made herself watch and pick her words around her crush carefully. The real her. 

Someone so selfish that they didn’t want Luz to leave, even when she knew that Luz wanted to. 

The person that made Amity sick to her stomach. 

And Luz knew it all now. 

And Luz didn’t know how to react to everything that she had just heard. 

She didn’t even know if she was in the realm world anymore - If it had actually been her that was knocked out, and was having a dream right now. The cold of the surroundings, the heat from Amity’s hands and from her own tears, and the way her heart was…. 

...Processing this… She wasn’t asleep. This was real. 

_ This was real.  _

Amity had to have been hit before the piece of the ceiling hit her - That must have been why she went so quiet before the ceiling began to fall around them. And then she - It just struck Luz. 

Amity had been resisting the influence of the Cherubim Rays from the moment she woke up - That had been the source of the pain. Boscha had resisted too, but it only lasted for a few seconds before it became too much for her. 

Amity had resisted for  _ entire minutes. Entire conversations.  _

And she… 

That… 

_ That was the reason she had been acting as she had?  _

And Luz didn’t know what to say. 

Did… Did she… 

“...I… Amity, I…” 

What was she supposed to say to all of that? 

“I didn’t… I… I don’t… I…” 

_ Tak! _

The blood in Luz’s veins froze. The Cherubim began to stop thudding against the side of the dome. She recognised the sound. 

_ Tk tk tk tk tk tk tk! Tak! Tak! Tak!  _

It was heavier. Larger. And she could hear it clearly now. It was close to them now.

The gurgling scream came next. Shrill and loud, and crisp, even with who knew how much dirt between the two of them, and the beast outside. 

“Amity - I - I - Can - Can you still do Magic? Can you move?” 

Heartbroken as she looked - And Luz wished she wasn’t having to ask this of her right now - Amity was able to nod. Her eyes still glowed blue. She could fight if she needed to. 

But Luz would settle for just being able to run. She readied an Ice Glyph. 

The thudding came just a second later. 

_ Thud! Thud! Thud! _

_ Thud! Thud! Thud!  _

_ Thud! Thud!  _

The dome shattered inwards, and plant and stone was shot inwards like debris. The cold night air washed over the two of them, and the noises of the Cherubim hordes overwhelmingly the senses again. 

At the centre of it all, the source of the dome's destruction. 

An Adult Cherubim - Half the size of Blight Manor.

_ Enormous. _ The sheer number of people this thing had to have fed on to grow to such a size - 

It roared at the two girls, and it’s eye craned in to look at the two of them, for just a few seconds. It took a particular interest in Amity. For all the world, Luz could have sworn that the things stomach-mouth turned into a ravenous, hungry grin.

At that, Luz slammed her Ice Glyph into the ground, and aimed the sharp Ice to go straight through the creature's bright red eye. 

It reacted though, and moved ever so slightly away from the incoming attack - Though it ended up having its neck skewered. A shrill shriek escaped the monster's mouth, and it staggered, like it was in pain. 

Adult Cherubim worked differently to regular Cherubim - Their only weak spot was their red eye being damaged. A giant Ice spike through the throat wouldn’t slow down the enormous monster for long. 

They’d be lucky if they even got half a minute’s head start. 

Throwing down every single Fire Glyph that she could, Luz generated a huge sweeping firestorm to cloak the night sky, and engulf as many of the adolescent Cherubim as possible - But it would also serve a useful double purpose - As a flare to let everyone know they were there! If they were lucky, someone would see it and come running to help them! 

However many Cherubim were burnt to nothing, it was impossible to count. The flames reached high into the sky, and the screaming noises of the burning Cherubim overwhelmed Luz’s ears for just a breif moment, before she forced herself to block it out. She grabbed hold of Amity’s hand, and took advantage of the clear skies, and impaled Adult Cherubim. 

She ran like her life depended on it, and she dragged Amity with her. 

“Come on Amity!” She screamed, as loud as she could. “Run for it!” 

Amity complied, running just to keep up with Luz. 

They ran down the hill that Blight Manor was build upon, down the path, past the gates, and onto the path to Bonesborough. They ran as fast as they had run before in their lives. They ran like they’d never run before. After all, they only had a few seconds head-start. 

Shreiking that echoed throughout the trees that surrounded them now informed them that their brief head-start was already up. 

A few seconds passed.

Then the ground began to shake. They were already being chased again. 

Looking over her shoulder, Luz felt her heart turn to ice as a Cherubim the size of a house was speeding towards her and Amity at the speed of a freight train. It’s younger was outside it’s mouth, drooling as it chased it’s prey. It’s pincers were outreached. It’s eye focused on them, with intent, and deadly purpose. 

For some reason, all Luz could think about was Grom. 

About how she had tried to face Grometheus alone. How she had needed Amity to protect her. 

How Amity was clearly the next thing on this behemoths list of things to eat. 

And how she wasn’t going to let that thing get anywhere near Amity. 

_ Not on her life. _

“Amity!” Luz yelled, almost pulling the Witch to be level and running alongside her, like she was about to throw her. “Keep running! Don’t stop until you get to Bonesborough, okay?!” 

“Luz?!” 

“Just trust me, okay?! Do it!” 

“What are you - “ 

“I’m gonna make sure this thing doesn’t get anywhere near you!” 

The Human let go of Amity’s hand, skidded to a halt, and reached into her jacket pockets - Plant Glyphs were located throughout them, and she slammed them all into the ground, to spout huge vines to swipe at and attack the creature, from torso to legs. 

With a scream, the Cherubim used it’s pincers to slice the vines in half, and bite through another one. Luz tossed down an Earth Glyph, turning the paper into a huge rock that she combined with a Wind Glyph to fire at the creature with the speed of a well-pitched baseball. But it did little to the monster, other than knocking it aside for just a few seconds. 

Luz threw everything that she could at the goliath of an Adult Cherubim - Wind Magic, Plant Magic, Ice Magic, and even attempts at using Light Magic to blind it - This creature had survived Valeween to grow to this size, and it was undeniably intelligent. It adapted, learning to counter Luz’s moves, and how to shrug off each strike by relying on little more than it’s unworldly speed, and titanic strength. It shrugged off each new attack, roaring, and looking more and more invested in its pursuit of its new target. 

It charged at Luz with a horrible, violent scream. Its jaws unhinged. Luz ran, trying to evade and get to the side. 

And it went for her leg. 

Pain shot throughout the entirety of Luz’s leg as she found herself lifted into the air by the gargantuan monster. It’s haphazardly organised teeth sank into her legs, like a dozen knives all sinking into her muscles and flesh. 

Scraping against her bones. 

All she could do was scream in pain, dangling as the creature got ready to chomp again. 

And then a fireball slammed into the side of the beast, and made it drop Luz to the floor. 

_ “Get off of her!”  _

Amity hadn’t run. Luz had assumed that she had. But she was still standing there, barely a few feet from where Luz had left her, eyes still glowing blue, and clearly in pain as she fought the influence of the Cherubim Rays, but defiant nevertheless. Her arm was outreached, ready to draw another spell. Ready to fight this thing on her own if she had to. 

The creature turned to glance at Amity for a moment, like it was curious. 

And maybe it was fear, or the effect of being under the influence of a Cherubim Ray, but Amity yelled at it again. “No one else is hurting Luz! I’m not going to let anyone hurt her ever again! _ Do you hear me?! No one!!”  _

“Amity…!”

Maybe the Adult even understood her. 

Because it then charged straight at her, jaw unhinged, ready to strike. 

Amity scrambled to cast another spell - 

But then suddenly, as if from nowhere, another fireball was launched. A brilliant orange flame that collided with the monster. 

And the beast was blasted off the face of the planet. 

Parts were shot and scattered in all directions, but they all turned to dust as they slammed across the ground. Everything was still for just a moment, as Luz and Amity both realised that the monster that had nearly swallowed them whole had just been turned into nothing but ashes. 

They - they were alive. They had been saved! 

But what - 

“Luz!!” 

It was Eda. And Lilith. And Gus, and Willow. 

All of them were running down the path, towards the pair of them. Eda had been the one to fire the fireball with her staff. All of them looked exhausted, battered, and scarred. Injuries and dirt covered their whole bodies. 

Yet they were here. They had saved the two of them. And Luz wanted to laugh. 

But that was the last thing that she saw before she blacked out. 

“Kid?” 

She could hear Eda’s voice as she drifted into unconsciousness. But she couldn’t wipe the smile off of her face.

They were safe. 

_ Amity _ was safe.

“Kid!!”

* * *

The injury tents, as it turned out, had always been little more than a stopgap measure. They weren’t the only place that people who were affected by Cherubim Rays or other injuries went - Rather, they were the holding area. 

Buildings were commandeered to act as hospitals as they were needed, and as protective areas to keep the infected safe from the Cherubim’s efforts to feed from them. Those buildings often filled up fast, and tents were set up as a sort of area to keep people who needed immediate help before they could be moved. When they were moved, they were moved into one of the many makeshift hospitals, where they would be looked after by volunteers, and kept safe. 

It was in one of these buildings that Luz finally woke up in, and found her leg in a cast, in a room that had a window with it, though the blind was down, so it was essentially useless. 

Somehow, when Luz opened her eyes, she found herself to be completely wide awake. No drowsiness, no grogginess, no ‘five more minutes’ desiring - She was up, and rested, and wanted to get up instantly. And she moved to do so, without thinking. 

Except the cast was for keeping her in place, and for helping to heal her injury - It couldn’t do anything about pain. And it didn’t when Luz tried to move it, only to be reminded that her limb had been half chewed by a carnivorous monster. 

“Ow!” She screamed on reflex, gripping hold of the covers and nearly falling out of bed right then and there.“ Ow ow ow ow oooooow!” 

No sooner had she yelled out in pain, did someone rush into the room, see her predicament, and run over to help her back into the bed. “Easy there, kid! Take it easy! You’re alright, okay?!” 

“E - Eda?” Luz blinked as soon as she realised who was suddenly in the room with her. “Eda, you’re - Where - “ 

“You’re in one of the field hospitals, kid. Relax.” Eda told her, pushing her back onto the bed, so she wasn’t stuck halfway between falling off the mattress anymore. “You had a real bad injury with one of the Adult Cherubim. You remember that?” 

“Y - Yeah.” Luz immediately nodded - The pain in her leg serving as a very enticing reminder. “Yeah I - I remember… Everything.” 

And she did. 

She remembered everything. 

Even if she still didn’t know how to process it. 

“Phew.” Eda wiped her brow. “Well, that’s a relief. There was like a fifty-fifty shot on the potions they used on you wiping your memory of the last six weeks.” 

“Wait, what?” 

“Kidding!” Eda held her hands up in mock surrender, putting on that face she did when she used her sense of humour to mask the fact that she had been worried. “...Would have been the last six hours. They had to put you onto some pretty strong stuff, you know. You got chewed up pretty bad there.” 

Glancing down at her cast, Luz looked at what little of her limb wasn’t wrapped in a few inches of plaster. The rest was covered in bandages, and at least a few layers of them from what Luz could tell. The pain was mild, like a gentle throbbing, but compared to how it had been when she was last awake, it felt far more muted. Less agonising, and more manageable. 

Of course, that didn’t mean it was pleasant or painless either. She could still practically feel the gashes where the Adult Cherubim’s teeth had sunk into her from every other direction. It made her shudder. She could already tell that she was going to have a scar or two from that whole ordeal. 

“Luz!” 

They had hesitated to speak up until now, but now, they made their voices known - Gus and Willow had been stood in the doorframe, watching as Eda helped Luz get back into a comfortable resting position. Now that she was okay, they dared to actually make themselves known. 

“You… You guys…” Luz couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her friends. “You’re both okay…” 

“Forget about us - Are you feeling alright?!” Gus all but shot himself to the side of Luz’s bed, and he looked like he was on the verge of tears from worry. “I’ve never even seen an Adult Cherubim get to that size! Do - Do you think it was the one we saw earlier?!” 

“I… I’m okay.” Physically, she wasn’t lying. The pain in her leg was there, but all things considered, for someone who was nearly eaten alive, she was feeling relatively okay. The other question gave her pause though. “It… I guess maybe it might have been the same Cherubim?” 

It might help to explain how the thing had gotten to be such an enormous size. If it was the same one, then it had had more than enough time to consume from dozens of other Witches. Luz wasn’t too sure on the odds of it though. She wouldn’t bet on it. 

Maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. Either way, it had been turned to dust, so they wouldn’t know anymore. 

Speaking off which, she turned to Eda again. “That was… That was you. Who saved me and Amity from that Cherubim, right?” 

“Yeah.” Her mentor nodded. “We all got messages from you at the same time. I guess you were cut off from the Magic that sends messages between Scrolls, or something, but they were all pretty hectic. And then we saw the fire from Blight Manor - Everyone talked about how the blue fire went out, but the orange one looked like it was done on purpose. The blue fire was small, like it was an internal thing, but the orange fire was huge and showy. Like someone wanted people to see it. Nice work, kid.” She gave her student an additional thumbs up.

Luz allowed herself to relax in the bed slightly. So, the double strategy with her Fire Glyphs had worked, and the messages had gotten to the rest of them after the dome was destroyed. And she and Amity had been able to hold out just long enough for them to get there… 

She wasn’t sure if she should thank her multiple methods of getting attention, or if she should thank Lady Luck. 

“We also heard from a Blight Manor butler.” Willow revealed. “He told us there were people there, but we couldn’t spare anyone for a while..”

Beckham, Luz added, in her mind. So he had gotten here okay...

While she was glad her friend was okay, Willow looked… Frustrated. “...Why didn’t you tell any of us where you were going?... We were worried sick about you!” 

“...Amity was in Blight Manor. I… I needed to help her.” 

Whatever frustrations Willow had, they almost immediately melted away as she pinched the bridge of her nose. A sigh escaped her. “...You had absolutely no way of knowing she was still there… But you rushing off to save Amity… Doesn’t in the least bit surprise me anymore.”

“I’m sorry…” 

“Don’t be.” Willow shook her head. “I wasn’t… I didn’t mean to sound upset with you. I would have done the same thing if I’d known. I just wish I’d been able to help.”

Willow was a caring soul, and Luz couldn’t help but smile at that. 

Suddenly though, a thought occurred to her. “Where’s Lilith?” 

“Helping with the walls” Eda answered. “Looks like they’ve decided Lilith is the one calling the shots there.” 

“And… Why’re you all here?” 

All three Witches looked at the Human. And for a moment, that was all any of them did, though for some reason, they looked like they’d just been slapped across the face.

Gus was the first one to speak up again. “...Er, we can go if you - “ 

“No! No, no, I don’t mean it like that.” Luz quickly clarified. Everyone’s faces relaxed a bit after that. “I mean, why’re you here now? What about the Cherubim?” She made herself sit up. “We still need to fight them off… Ow.” 

“Okay, first off - “ Eda pushed Luz back down onto the mattress. “ - You’re staying right here, and don’t make me strap you in place here. Seriously, this is a Valeween hospital, they’ve got plenty of stuff to keep people from getting up and running around, and maybe three of them are comfortable. You’re not getting involved in any sort of fighting. Second of all - “

”I’m not saying here, Eda!”

“Oh yes you are, kid!” 

“It’s over.” Willow said. 

Luz blinked. “What’s over?” 

“Valeween. It’s done.” 

“...What?” 

“It ended maybe an hour after we brought you here.” Gus told her. He then reached into a pocket within his cowl, and retrieved something from it - Luz’s phone. “Here, I saw how you used this… Box, to save things as they happened before. I saved it for you. I thought you’d want to see it.” 

Taking her phone, Luz flipped through a couple of screens, hit a few icons, and saw the latest recording on her phone. 

It started already partway through the process, but Luz could understand the gist of what was happening - The Cherubim had simply abandoned the fight as soon as day began to come. They flew away from their prey, regardless of how weak or isolated they were, and flew back to the red tear in the sky. Adult Cherubim could be seen flying too, far higher than they would normally fly throughout the invasion. 

Waves upon waves of them rose into the skies, blocking out the light of the sun and the moon, leaving only pockets of free, open, light providing air, as they had when they first arrived yesterday afternoon. Only this time, instead of pouring out of the tear, they poured into it. 

As they entered the great red tear in the sky, the clouds that had taken to orbiting it suddenly became less and less distorted, and began to return to their original pathways, as the sky began to close. The phone scanned over the forests, and Luz watched, with a slight sense of awe, as the trees turned back from black, to the various wonderful shades of red they had been days before. 

A huge cheer erupted from everyone around the phone, like the cries of a victorious army that had seen off its attackers. 

In a sense, that was what had happened. 

The phone dropped onto Luz’s lap, and she leaned back into the mattress. She stared at the roof for a few seconds, processing it all. 

“...It’s over?” 

“That's right, kid.” Eda said, letting herself smile. “And don’t worry about missing the celebrations either - Those don’t start until all the wounded are healed. I’m pretty sure a Healer’ll come by soon. You seem to have gotten some of the worst injuries of anyone this time around. You just rest up.” 

A small laugh just escaped Luz - She couldn’t help it. 

_ It was over! They had done it! They’d gotten through Valeween!  _

...Well, she had. And if by gotten through, she meant ‘Hadn’t been hit by a Cherubim Ray’. 

Now that it was over… A lot of people were going to have to find out where they stood with people. 

And… She had questions of her own she needed answered. That she needed to figure out the answers to. 

“....Where’s Amity?” She asked. 

“...She got taken to be looked after with the rest of the infected.” Gus told her, carefully avoiding her question. “Eda used her staff to use Magic to put her to sleep, and then we brought her back here. The Cherubim Ray effects wear off once the Cherubim leave - “ 

_ “Where is she?” _

Gus and Willow both looked at one another. Willow sighed, and looked at Luz. 

“...We don’t know.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You thought we were done here?? You fools! 
> 
> You all have no idea how happy I am that no one managed to guess exactly what I was going for here. 
> 
> I had to do a bit of research for this chapter, especially around "Te Quiero" - Apparently the significance of the term varies heavily from country to country. Apparently it can vary from culture to culture from being super important, to being friendly banter between friends, to closeness, and so on and so forth. Same as "Te Amo". As I understand it, Dominican culture, which Luz hails from, (And a place I've also been) I believe it can be used in both a romantic sense and a friendship sense. Really interesting language with how much impact they put into certain sayings. British as I am, I understand no Spanish whatsoever though, so I ran this all through google translate so here's hoping it's not just completely wrong. 
> 
> Hope that the return of the art was nice - I managed to put some time aside to make some for this special occasion, though I'm still pretty busy with Uni while doing this. bit more comic-y than the previous ones, but hey, comics is my alma-mater after all
> 
> Not much more to say honestly - I've been looking forward to seeing this one done for a while now - I hope you all enjoyed, and I'll be seeing you next chapter soon - See you!


	11. Miasma

It wasn’t like Amity had disappeared off the face of the Realm. Not really.

Because she had been infected by a Cherubim Ray, she had been taken to one of the makeshift hospitals for the infected, to protect them from any Cherubim attacks, and keep those that sought to feed from them away - A system designed to both protect them, and to pragmatically keep any more Adult Cherubim from forming throughout the night, to keep the wider population safe too. Those very makeshift homes - turned - hospitals were one of the first innovations for dealing with the Cherubim that the Witches of the Isles had thought up, centuries ago. Many buildings that were on the edge of the town had even been constructed with this exact purpose in mind. 

If someone checked, they would see the internal architecture of the newer homes change throughout the ages in a circular, radial pattern, as new ideas and innovations came with the centuries. 

They were also one of the preparatory defences that saw the most immediate clearing out. As the event of Valeween came to a close, the effects of the Cherubim’s Rays wore off, the moment that the tear between their realities shut itself, everyone who had been hit by a Cherubim Ray returned to their normal selves. 

With the memories of what they said and what they did while under the influence of the invaders still perfectly intact. 

Buildings that had been converted into these hospitals could be cleared out very quickly and easily, and often were, but after the Cherubim left, those who had been affected were seen as the truest victims of the invasion. That wasn’t to say that people who had been subjected to their outbursts or actions weren’t victims as well, but there was a degree of separation there that made the Boiling Isles come to see those who had been directly affected as the true victims. As they left the converted hospitals, and entered society again, some cried at what they had done or said, some seething with anger or embarrassment, while others found themselves to be incredibly lucky, socially speaking, but still traumatised from the experience. The variety of reactions and emotions was equal to that of the number that had been hit by a Cherubim Ray. 

And victims or not, they would have to deal with the consequences of what they had been made to say or do. At least, socially speaking. No one was going to be arrested for something they couldn’t control, but that didn’t mean the people they had been around had to forgive or accept what they did either. 

This particular invasion had seen a… Roughly average number of people who had been affected by the Cherubim Rays. And while it varied depending on where you were on the Isles, that translated to roughly a tenth of the entire population of Bonesborough.

And that translated to just about everyone in the city knowing at least one other person who had been affected by the Cherubim Rays. 

It was easy to blend in with a crowd of that size and get out of the place before anyone knew where you went if that was what you wanted to do. Hell, it wasn’t even like Amity was the only person to do so that particular Valeween either. Just one more person in a crowd of hundreds that could slip off without being noticed by anyone.

Not that that made not knowing where she had ended up any easier. 

It took just a few hours after she woke up before a Healer made their way towards Luz, to inspect the chewed-up leg that she now sported. The Healer looked at the injury, and actually winced at the sight once the cast was off. Considering just how messed up things could get on the Isles, between the monsters, Magic, and brutal ecosystem, Luz thanked God that she couldn’t see her own leg from this angle. Any injury that inspired  _ that _ reaction from a  _ Healer _ couldn’t be a pleasant sight, and she was worried that if she saw it, she would really freak out, or be sick. She just closed her eyes, tightly. 

Magic was applied, as was a series of potions, and another batch of potions that were given to her as a sort of prescription, with instructions on what to take, how much to, and when to take them. The potions were mostly for helping with pain and to finish up the internal healing process, but Luz was given permission to be back on her feet, provided she was careful, and didn’t strain herself. There would still be a pain in the leg, but it would be gone in a couple of days, provided she was conservative with how much she relied on it. 

Several scars were permanent though. There was only so far Magic could assist - It could speed up the Healing process. It couldn’t do anything the body wasn’t capable of itself. And some of the teeth of the Adult Cherubim had gotten in deep - Very deep. The body couldn’t always heal everything. Some marks would remain. But to be honest, Luz didn’t mind. She even thought they looked kind of cool. 

Or would have. If anything other than Amity was on her mind. 

The ride back to the Owl House was a silent one, Eda and Luz flying above the ground on Owlbert, no longer needing to fear Cherubim assault. Lilith would return on her own at some point, since she seemed to have taken to organizational efforts throughout the town, helping to move things, take down the defences and the likes. People needed her there, and she was glad to feel needed again. 

The island looked beautiful once more, it’s vibrant reds and oranges covering the place once more, as opposed to the shades of black and grey that all the plants had been over the last few days. It made the island feel like it was alive again. The air felt fresher. Tasted fresher. Even the yellowish bones of the Titan’s skeleton remains looked brighter and more full of life than they did throughout the rest of the week. It was spectacular. 

But Luz only had Amity on her mind. She didn’t pay it all that much attention. 

Mercifully, Eda didn’t say anything. She didn’t try to make conversation, nor did she pry about anything while Luz had been waiting for a Healer to arrive. She didn’t try to get anything out of Luz. Because she knew the signs. 

Something had happened before she had arrived last night.

And the last thing Luz needed right now was someone prying into her business. It was like yesterday morning. She would make sure that Luz knew she was there if she needed someone to talk to, but Eda would respect her space. She knew how Luz worked. 

How Valeween made people work. 

While she had expressed her concern with Luz rushing off during Valeween, she hadn’t even raised her voice or chastised her in any way for it. She understood that Luz’s friends needed help, and that Luz went to help them. She understood. And chastising her right now wouldn’t do anything anyway. Knowing Luz, it wouldn’t do anything anyway. So she didn’t do it. Just another thing Luz didn’t need right now. 

Luz was grateful for both those things. Even if she didn’t express it. 

As they reached the clearing that the Owl House was built within, and began to descend, Eda opted to ask a single, neutral question. “How’s your leg doing? It still hurt?” 

“...It’s okay.” Luz gave her answer simply, and quietly. 

“You need any help getting inside?” 

“Thank you… But I’ll be okay.” 

“Alright, kid.” Eda nodded, and her feet touched the ground as her Staff lowered them down. She let Luz get off before she swung it in front of herself, and held it upright in her hand. 

The Owl House itself looked to be relatively untouched, actually. Some piles of dust were noticeable around the defences, and none of the barriers that covered up the windows had been taken down either. Cherubim had been here, but they didn’t seem to have even remotely damaged the property in any way at all. Of course, that probably came down to the fact no Witches or Humans were there. Eda had been attacked in the house during previous Valeweens, and the one time she wasn’t there, they didn’t so much as leave an impact on the side of the building? Somehow, Eda doubted that was a coincidence. The ones that did end up here and somehow got caught in the traps and defenses were probably going to find a place in a book somewhere about natural selection. 

And once again, Luz barely even acknowledged it. Her mind was still on Amity. 

_ “Hoot! Hoot! _ Hey guys!” Just as soon as they had landed and gotten off the Staff, Hooty’s voice quickly filled the air. He extended up to the pair of recent arrivals, sounding as cheerful as he ever did.

“...Hey, Hooty.” Luz said, quietly, and with barely any emotion at all.

“You both okay? Nobody hurt? No big, dramatic, life changing events or anything?” 

“Yeah, maybe don’t ask anything like that.” Eda hissed at Hooty, pressing a finger over her lips. 

It seemed to take Hooty a second to realize what Eda was implying. “Oh. Well, something dramatic happened here while you were gone!  _ Hooty Hoot!  _ Okay, so - ” 

“I… Don’t care right now.” Eda flatly replied, and just walked past the House Demon, and opened the door. While she was there, Hooty retracted into his perch, and Eda whispered, “Just... Keep it down for a bit, alright? For Luz’s sake.”

As if to punctuate the point, Luz just slowly made her way past the two of them, her head hung towards the ground, and her limbs with barely any rigidity to them. Like she was near entirely limp. It wasn’t even clear if she had even heard Hooty past his greeting, or Eda’s responses. 

While Hooty had little sense in social graces or anything even approximating them, he wasn’t a completely unaware creature. He had seen similar body language and expression in Luz when Eda had been kidnapped by the Emperor, and he recognised it now. He did the closest thing that he could do to a nod, and let Eda and Luz enter the house without another word. 

Interior wise, the Owl House was nearly just as it had been when they had left yesterday evening. Things were still strewn about the table, plates and cutlery were still in the sink and placed randomly on the counter as they had been ignored over the last few days in favour of preparations, and everything that had crashed to the floor when Luz called Eda and Lilith outside was still on the floor. Just about everything was the same. 

The only difference was that now there was a stool from the kitchen that had been moved to the living room window, and a huge fort of pillows and blankets located on the couch. 

No prizes for figuring out where King had been hiding throughout the night. 

As soon as that thought crossed Eda’s mind, the tiny demon’s head emerged from the top of the fort, and looked around, his stuffed animal in one hand, and a ladle he was apparently going to use as a weapon in the other - Evidently, he was still on edge. 

When he saw that it was people, and who those people were that had entered the house though, he quickly relaxed, and dropped both. “You’re back!” He exclaimed, cheerful at the sight of both of them. 

Immediately, he ran over to Luz, and more or less leapt at her, abandoning whatever aloof attitude he normally had when it came to being openly affectionate with the people he cared about. While Luz adjusted her arms and caught him, she didn’t really return the affection in the normal manner that she usually did. She simply caught him and prevented him from falling back to the ground, but did no more. 

“...Hey, King.” She greeted, about as enthusiastically as she had greeted Hooty. 

King noticed pretty much instantly. “Weh? What’s up with you, Luz?” He blinked. “Wait, you didn’t get hit, did you?!” 

“Not her, no.” Eda answered, taking King off of Luz and holding him herself. 

“Someone she knows?! Who upset her?! I’ll make them rue the day they - ” 

_ “Just leave it, you little - “ _

“It’s okay!” Luz said, firmly. Just that bit louder that everyone stopped talking and gave her their full attention. The first sign of any actual outward expression since leaving the makeshift hospitals. She shied away after saying it, and returned to that quiet way of speaking she’d been using since the hospital. “It… It’s fine. Honestly.” 

“...No, it’s not, kid.” Eda responded, though her tone wasn’t confrontational. It was… Understanding. She chose her words carefully. “It’s clearly bothering you.“ 

And it was. Everything that had happened to her throughout Valeween - Very little of which Eda herself even knew - had clearly had an effect on Luz’s mental and emotional state right now. There was something that had happened to her that she didn’t know how to deal with. Something major. 

Something important. 

“...And you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” Eda assured her. “There’s nothing wrong with needing time to yourself.”

Luz glanced at King, saw the look of worry he now had, and let a heavy sigh escape her. Right as Eda was, she hadn’t meant to worry King. She’d been wrapped up in her own thoughts, and hadn’t thought about anyone else around her, or their concerns.

“...Sorry, King. It’s just…” She tried to find the right way to say it. “It’s been a rough couple of days. I’ve got a… A lot on my mind and I’d… Like to be alone for a while, if that’s okay.” 

He tilted his head, but King nodded. “If… That's what you want, Luz. If you ever want any company though, you know where I’ll be.” 

A small smile and nod followed from Luz. 

“I’ll make you some food.” Eda said. “And I’ll leave it in stasis for you for whenever you’re ready for it, like yesterday.”

The Human just nodded again, made her way to the steps, and got ready to climb. Her injured leg made it a bit more difficult, but she would manage. She got up a couple of steps, using her good leg to lift herself up, and used the railing to balance herself. 

She paused though, and looked back at Eda and King. Both of them were just watching her, obvious concern on their faces. Not that Luz could blame them. And in a weird way, she did appreciate their concern. It was nice to know that they cared enough to be concerned. Not that she doubted it anyway, but seeing it was… Weirdly nice. If a little guilt inducing.

She couldn’t bring herself to just go without saying… Something. 

“...Hey, Eda?” 

“What’s up, kid?” 

“I just…” Luz tried to think of what words to use here. There weren’t really any combinations of words in any language that she knew that could express what she wanted to say in a concise manner. It would end up being a long-winded, elaborate speech that she’d have to do to express it properly. 

Something that she wasn’t up for right now. So instead, she just opted to be simple with what she had to say. 

“...Thank you. For being so… Understanding. About everything. It… It means a lot more than I think you know. And… A lot more than I think I can say.” 

All Eda did was smile. “I was a kid once too, you know. I’ve had… Nasty Valeween’s myself. I know what it’s like. Just… Remember what I said yesterday, yeah? If you need anything, just let me know.” 

“I know. Thank you.” 

“Ooh, wait, wait, hold on!” King suddenly began to wriggle around and escape being held, until Eda just let him drop unceremoniously to the floor. 

Running quickly to the pillow fort he had been hiding in, he grabbed hold of the stuffed animal he had been hiding with. He then hugged it, looked for all the world like he was whispering something to it, and then ran to Luz’s feet, and offered her the toy. 

“I know you said you didn’t want company, but being around this guy always makes me feel better, so, maybe he’ll help you too?” 

Such a kind and cute gesture -  _ That _ , Luz couldn’t _ not _ react to.

Picking up King, this time, Luz actually gave him a hug, and this time, King didn't even put up even the smallest level of feigning disdain for the gesture. And when the Human put him down, she accepted his offer, and took the stuffed animal with her. 

“Thank you. I… I think he’ll help.” She said, giving him a gentle smile. And then she turned, and began to make her way up the steps again. The sound of footsteps continued for a few seconds from the next floor up, until they eventually stopped, following the sound of a shutting door. 

Only once he heard the door to Luz’s room shut, did King speak up again. “So… What happened? Do you know?” 

“Just a little.” Eda shrugged. “She was with that Amity girl, and she got hit by a Cherubim Ray, so, I guess that she said something to Luz. I dunno what they said to each other exactly, but…” 

Sighing, the older Witch took a seat on the couch, next to the pillow fort. It was the first time she had been able to get off her feet since this all started yesterday, and she was beyond exhausted from standing up the entire time. Her feet felt like they were covered in blisters. 

Her eyes glanced up at the ceiling. A frown occupied her face. 

“...I have a feeling that Luz doesn’t even know where to begin to make sense of it.”

* * *

When the door shut behind Luz, she took a brief moment to look around her room. For some reason, she half expected it to be completely different. 

But it wasn’t. It was the exact same as it had been when she left it. Clothes, paper, and the angle that she had left the chair at when she got up from her desk last. Even the creases in the duvet on her bed were the same. 

It was like it preserved the moment Luz was last in there, and had waited for her to return, to pick up where she left off.

There was a weird… Longing that came with that. No matter how long she left the room, and no matter what state she left the room in, when she came back, it would always be the same. It wouldn’t change. Not without her knowing about it. Not without her wanting it to change. She didn’t have to think about it. She knew where she stood with her room. What she thought about her room. 

She didn’t have that with Amity. 

Not anymore. 

Wandering over to her bed, she collapsed onto the mattress face down, with an absolutely graceless fall in which her face ended up burrowing in the mattress in a way that felt like she landed on her nose far more than her face. Despite being laid on a hospital bed all day, she was exhausted, and just wanted to lay down. She expected to be comfortable, but she wasn’t. For some reason, the mattress felt more like springs than it did like cotton or feathers or… Whatever the Boiling Isles used to fill in mattresses. It didn’t feel like what Luz was used to, what she had spelt on for the last few months. Her mattress felt different, in spite of nothing being different about it in the least. She couldn’t bring herself to care all that much though, and laid there regardless. 

All she had had on her mind since she woke up was Amity. 

Rolling onto her back, Luz looked at the ceiling. It would have been so easy to fall asleep. Her eyes felt heavy enough to close for the next twenty four hours - Probably a side effect of the Healing Magic, and the potions she had been given. She couldn’t though. 

The events in Blight Manor replayed in her mind, over and over again. 

Every word that Amity said. Every expression she made. Every noise she made. 

Every sob. Every tear. Every cry of pain. 

Everything was so tangible in her mind, replayed in front of her so vividly, that she could almost reach out and touch it. 

_ Amity was in love with her. _

Just thinking about that was… The best word Luz could think of was disorienting. Confusing. It was hard to believe - Impossible almost. If Luz hadn’t been there to hear it and see it first hand, she  _ wouldn’t  _ have been able to believe it. 

But it was the truth. 

_ Amity _ was in love with her.

_ Amity Blight was in love with Luz Noceda. _

No matter how many times she repeated it in her head, no matter how she phrased it, no matter what words she put emphasis on, it still sounded so absurd, so… Surreal. So… 

_...So much like back home... _

…Luz didn’t know what to do. She didn’t know what to think. 

Minutes passed, and she just watched the memory play out in her mind, over and over and over again. She couldn’t stop it. Couldn’t think, or focus on anything else. It consumed her mind. 

That moment when Luz saw Amity’s eyes change to blue stood out the most.

_ Don’t go.  _

That had been what Amity kept a secret. A desire for Luz to stay in the Isles? Not the fact she was in love with her in the first place? She had said that she had been playing to confess before going to the Ved’ma temple… Maybe that was why. 

Or was it that she had forced herself to resist the effects of the Cherubim Ray’s until she had got to say it on her own terms? If that was the case, was that abnormal for a Witch? To be able to resist the effects for as long as she had? Boscha had lost the fight after just a few seconds. That one guy before, Lecta, hadn’t even managed the few seconds that Boscha had managed. So did that say something about Amity’s willpower? Or had something else been at play there? 

What…  _ What did Amity even see in Luz? What was there to even see? _

Luz shook her head - It was all such a jumbled mess that didn’t make any real sort of sense the more that Luz thought about it. Every question just led to more questions, and that led to more questions, until entire new spider diagrams of questions had been brought about. It was all so, so confusing. She didn’t know why Amity felt the way she felt. 

She didn’t even know what she felt anymore. 

She didn’t even know what she thought anymore. 

…She didn’t know what to do. 

Amity was the closest friend that she had on the Isles, and Luz treasured the friendship that they did have. It meant far more than she could figure out how to put into words. As a person, Amity was incredible - Smart, skilled, talented. Kind underneath the exterior she put up. Probably one of the kindest people that Luz had ever known. Brave enough that she would stand up to Adult Cherubim on her own when she needed to. Strong enough to fight against swarms of the things on her own. There were a million words Luz could use to describe Amity. 

And right now, she didn’t know which ones to use.

There was no structure to her thoughts. No consistency. She couldn’t stay on any one train of thought for long before it jumped onto another topic, or another feeling took hold that drew her attention, or another memory played by itself in her mind. Too many things jumped around in her mind to grab hold of any one thing. 

Luz wanted to be alone, in her room, where nothing could bother her. 

But being alone made her thoughts jumble and wander on their own. She just… 

…Wanted things to make sense again.

* * *

It was hard not to wonder if anything had gone differently if Luz had taken one of  _ these _ weapons. 

The armoury that the Owl House sported was still lined with all manner of dangerous, and almost certainly illegally owned weapons, from halberds to axes, and from swords to throwing knives. Sharp. Designed for lethality. Some, she was fairly sure, were custom made. All far more deadly and dangerous weapons than the baseball bat that Luz had chosen for herself to protect against Valeween invaders. 

Reality was that Luz wasn’t built to handle weapons like this. Ever since she arrived on the Isles, she had gotten a long physically stronger, that was true, but that didn’t mean she was  _ trained _ in how to handle swords. That much had become clear when she tried to pick one out to fight the Emperor with when Eda had been kidnapped. A ball-and-chain flail, she had managed to handle at Grom, sure, but the Cherubim required a lot more precision to take down than whatever nightmares Grometheus had sent her way. There was too big a risk of accidentally hitting someone else with a weapon like that. 

Plus, even having a weapon like that at all was a last-minute choice she had made to try to round out her group's methods of fighting after Amity said that she wasn’t going to be joining them. A few hours practice with a sword wouldn’t have made a difference anyway. Swords weren’t just a matter of swinging metal around and hoping that whatever you didn’t like went away. She had seen Amity enough to know that much at least. 

No, her choice to utilise a baseball bat that Eda kept in one of the other storage rooms had been one she had made out of pragmatism. She wasn’t Amity - Amity had been trained in how to use a sword, and had been for years. She knew what she was doing. Luz knew how to handle a baseball bat. So she had gone with that. And combined with her Glyphs, it had been a deadly weapon in it’s own right. 

In the moment, back then, she had made the right choice, she was sure. 

But it was still something Luz wondered. Maybe if she’d made a different choice somewhere, somehow, the butterfly effect would have kicked into gear, and something would have changed. 

Maybe she wouldn’t know what she knew now. And maybe she wouldn’t have to be fighting with her own heart to figure out what came next. 

Thanks to the Magic and the potions that Luz had been ascribed, it was only a day before Luz felt the worst part of her leg heal up, and let her put weight back on it again. There was still a sting and a bit of stiffness to it, but for the most part, Luz felt like she was almost completely better, physically speaking. She was up and about, though she still spent much of her time on her own, in her room, repeating the same things, and same sentences to herself, over and over again. The entire reason she had come to the armoury was for a change of scenery. 

Her thoughts betrayed her though. No matter where she went, those thoughts and memories followed her. They had for the last two days now, and they didn’t show any signs of stopping. Her brain hadn’t gotten any more sensible even after sleep, and even after eating. Nothing made any sense. She couldn’t stay on topic in her head long enough for anything to make sense. 

Amity was in love with her… And Luz didn’t know what to do with that information. 

She sighed, and slumped against one of the walls. “What the heck am I supposed to do…” 

It was never like this in stories, or fanfiction, or fantasy, or anything like that - Maybe there would be some confusion on the half of the hero, but they seemed to understand how they felt, what to do, and what to say. They could always figure it out. Be it in the affirmative or the negative, they always seemed to navigate the situation perfectly. 

Maybe that was another reason why Luz had loved fantasy growing up. It let her transpose herself into someone who knew what they were doing. 

Because the reality was that she didn’t have a clue. She couldn’t even put a word onto what she felt about all of this. 

...Or she was too scared to. 

Honestly, she didn’t know which it was. 

Another sigh escaped her, and she stood upright again. Plan ‘Distract - yourself - from - the - confusing - thoughts’ had failed miserably, and would continue to fail miserably, so she left the armoury, and began to make her way back to her room. She hadn’t heard from either of her friends since the incident. Maybe one of them could talk with her, help her figure things out. 

As soon as she reached the living room though, she ran into Eda. She was just sat there, on the couch, with a book in one hand, and a cup of Groffee - Essentially coffee, but with the usual Boiling Isles twist. For one thing, Groffee was  _ yellow. _

Eda and Luz both looked at one another, like neither of them was sure what to do. The older Witch hadn’t been here when Luz had come down initially, so she must have come in here and settled down in the last twenty minutes or so. And she had had no idea Luz had even left her room - So running into one another like this was, to say the least, awkward. 

Mercifully though, Eda didn’t say a word. She just gave Luz a gentle nod, and a smile. An acknowledgement of her presence, but not pressuring her into talking if she didn’t want that right now. 

And Luz nodded back. Eda’s eyes returned to her book, and Luz began to make her way across the living room. 

And then she stopped. 

“...Hey, Eda.”

Eda looked up again. 

“Can… Can we talk?” 

With one hand, the book was closed with a crisp ‘ _ thwud’  _ as the pages came together, and Eda put it to the side of her. “You want some Groffee? Or some Blood Tea, or something?” 

“Erm… I’ll have Blood Tea if that’s okay.” In spite of its name, Blood Tea wasn’t actually made of blood. It was actually made from some kind of tree sap that tasted sort of like toffee. Luz had actually developed a bit of a taste for it. 

Eda patted the seat on the couch next to her, indicating that Luz could sit there, and got up, and made her way to the kitchen counter. Luz sat herself down, and a couple of minutes later, Eda returned with a nice, hot drink for her. Immediately, Luz took a sip, and a cold that she hadn’t realised had gotten into her body evaporated. It helped to relax her, at least a little. 

Going back upstairs and returning to nothing but screaming at herself in her mind was… Not an expelling prospect, to say the least. Luz didn’t know what to do or where to start. At this point, she was willing to try talking. 

Maybe it would help. Or maybe she was just more sick of the silence than she was anything else. 

Taking a sip of her own, Eda let out a sigh as she finished, and then turned towards Luz. “So… I’m guessing being on your own hasn’t helped you figure things out, huh?” 

“...No.” Luz admitted, though for some reason, it didn’t feel like it was shameful or awkward to admit to that. “It… I think it just made things more confusing to be honest.” 

“Yeah… That can happen.” Eda nodded. She took another sip of her Groffee. “Well, I said I’d listen if you needed to talk, and you’ve been really… Not Luz-y for the last couple days. What’s going on, kid?” 

“...I’m confused. About a lot of stuff.” The Human explained, trying to figure out how to boil down the complexities of her life recently into just a few words. “A lot of stuff happened over the last three days and I… I don’t even know how I feel about it. What I should feel about it… Or what I’m supposed to do about it. And I can’t figure it out.” 

“Hit me with it.” 

So Luz did - She explained everything that had been going on since the start of Valeween. The way that Amity had acted, the time they had spent training together, and the fight that they had ended up having. She explained where she had gone during Valeween, and why she hadn’t said a word about it to Eda. She told her about what happened in Blight Manor. 

About what Amity said to her. 

The only thing she left out was the story Amity had told her about her parents and the previous Valeween. That was for Amity to tell. Not her. 

Throughout it all, Eda didn’t interrupt. She just sat there, and listened, occasionally taking a sip of her Groffee. Her expressions changed at certain points in the story, indicating surprise or worry, but she never once spoke. Even when Luz asked her if what she was saying made sense, the Owl Lady only nodded her head, to let the Human know she was following everything that she was saying. 

_ And it felt really, really good to say it all out loud.  _ Like a boulder had been lifted off of Luz’s chest. It felt good to be able to get this all out there, in the open, where it no longer crushed her very spirit and soul. It didn’t help to make things make any more sense, or help her figure out what she should do, but… It felt good to vent it out loud at least. 

When she finished, Eda just let out a long, low whistle, before she finished her drink. “Well that’s… Different to how I thought this was gonna go.” 

“Sorry.” Luz apologised, though to be honest, she didn’t know what for. “I know, it’s super confusing… And awkward - ” 

“No, I just thought that green-top was never gonna make a move.” She shrugged. “Then again, I dunno if being forced to by a Cherubim counts as making a move.” 

“Yeah, I - Wait,  _ what.” _ Luz blinked, and just stared at Eda, not sure if she had heard that right. 

The older woman raised an eyebrow incredulously at the teenager. “Don’t tell me you didn’t notice that she’s crazy about you.” 

“I don’t - “ 

“Seriously? Kid, I see her maybe once a week for maybe an hour, and even I noticed.” 

“People don’t have crushes on me, Eda! That - That’s not how that works! That - That’s never been how any of this works!” Luz almost threw her hands into the air, before she remembered that she had Blood Tea in her hands. “I don’t… No one even liked me enough to be around me back on Earth. I’m lucky that people even want to be my friend here, but the idea that people…  _ Like me _ like that is - I - I don’t…” Her voice trailed off. Bad experiences, bad memories of what that was like back on Earth flooded her mind. 

Not once in her life had Luz ever been confessed to, or asked out, or anything like that, when the end result wasn’t just a joke - Or a dare, or… Something else along those lines. Luz wasn’t liked at the best of times. But some people would pretend that they did sometimes to impress their friends. 

_ Who could dare being around the weirdo for a while? _

It just - It didn’t happen. That wasn’t how things worked. People  _ didn’t like _ Luz. That wasn’t how it worked. 

“...Well, not to rub it in or anything,” Eda said, leaning back into the couch. “But you’re not on Earth right now. You’re on the Boiling Isles. And things work differently here. She got hit by a Cherubim Ray, so unless you think she was somehow lying to you…” 

“No, no, I don’t. I just…” Luz’s shoulders slumped, and she faced forward, decidedly not looking towards Eda. Because of how the Cherubim worked, it… It was undeniable that that was how Amity felt about Luz. That in of itself wasn’t even the issue. “...I don’t… I don’t know how I feel about Amity…” 

“...Go on.” Eda urged, gently. 

“....Amity is like… One of the best friends I’ve ever had. She’s one of the best people I’ve ever even known. She… She really tries her hardest, you know? A lot of really bad stuff happened to her with her parents, and she screwed up a lot in the past, but she’s tried so hard to try to make things better. She tries to be better. She’s really good to people. She helps me when I struggle with certain classes. I can actually make a sort-of Abomination because of her. I… I can’t imagine this place without her.” 

A pause. 

“....I don’t  _ want _ to imagine this place without her. But I never… I don’t think I ever thought about it… Like that before.” 

She had assumed that she felt the way she did about Amity because Amity was her closest friend. Now she wasn’t sure if that was what it was, or if there was something more there. 

“...You know I got confessed to during a Valeween once?” 

Luz’s entire body turned towards Eda at that. There was a fond smile on Eda’s expression, like she was remembering the entire thing clearly. Luz could have sworn she saw a hint of red on her cheeks too. 

“Wait, you’re serious?!” 

“What, you think I wasn’t pulling bachelors and bachelorettes back when I was your age?” Eda smirked, and feigned mock-offence. “Have a little more faith in me, kid. I’m still fighting them off with a stick. You remember the Warden, right?” 

“...Okay, fair point.” 

Eda chuckled, and then returned to her reminiscing. “I knew this person since we were both little girls. Their name was Yeven. Started going with they back when we were thirteen, but they were one of the best friends I had back then. Probably one of the only ones who didn’t get sick of me turning Hexside into a war zone. Don’t think Lily liked them very much. Anyway, we got hit with a Valeween and we decided to tough it out together. Kinda like what you and your friends did, only back then we got hit by a far worse wave. They got hit and… Boom. I was in the same situation you are now.” 

“...What’d you do?” 

Another pause, this time, as Eda’s smile fell slightly. 

“...To be completely level with you? I froze up. This was one of my best friends, what was I supposed to say? Hell, what was I supposed to think? It’s been over twenty years, and I’m still not sure what I was supposed to think. So I… Didn’t.” 

There was regret there. Luz could tell, just by the way Eda’s eyes seemed to lose that bit of light that they had had before. Eda wasn’t normally one to show that sort of emotion. She kept moving forward. This bugged her still, Luz realised. 

...Was that part of why she didn’t want to be involved in defending Bonesborough? 

“And, well, anyway, we kind of grew apart, and then I got cursed, and that was that.” Eda wrapped up her story quickly, obviously skimming over some details she didn’t want to get into, and allowed herself to sink deeper into the couch. “Story’s over.” 

“...You… You think that’s going to happen with me and Amity?...” 

“...That’ll depend on you.” Eda answered, honestly, but gently. She sighed. “Look, Luz, the point of that wasn’t to make you nervous or think that ruined friendships is all that you have to look forward to. You’re not me, and you don’t have to make the same mistakes I did. It was… I can’t help you figure out how you feel about green-top. That’s got to be for you to figure out, but the only advice I can really give you is this.” 

Sitting upright, Eda made it so she was level with Luz, and looked her in the eyes. 

“Figure out how you feel about her. And then act on it. Because you… You’re lucky, in a way. You know what the answer will be. You don’t have to figure it out right away. Just… Try to figure it out, before something takes that chance away from you.”

It made sense, Luz supposed. It didn’t get her any close to where she wanted to be, but… It helped. It put things into perspective, at least a little bit. Helped her to contextualise. Figure things out. Gave her something to focus on. 

Not that she knew how she was going to figure it out, mind, but… At least it was something she could try to aim for. 

That was better than just hoping random thoughts would begin to make sense. 

“...Thanks, Eda.” Luz said, getting onto her feet. “I…. I think I needed that.” 

“Feel any better?” 

“A bit.” She nodded. Having it all off her chest, and getting to just… Talk to someone about it had helped. If nothing else, it had let her calm down a bit. “I still don’t know… What to do. But I know what I need to focus on, I guess.” 

With a nod, Eda smiled. “Better place than you were before, then.” 

“Yeah…” Luz nodded again. It was better than her mind being an unfocused miasma. But still... “I’m… I’m gonna go back upstairs. I need to think a little bit more. If I need to talk more - “ 

“I’ll be right here, don’t worry.” 

“Thank you.” Luz smiled, and began to make her way up the stairs again, before she paused halfway up them. “Hey, Eda?” 

“That was fast. Now what’s up?” 

“Maybe you should look up Yeven.” A small grin spread on Luz’s lips as Eda’s head swivelled to look at her. “Hey, you never know.” 

_ “I’m gonna poison your next meal, kid.” _

* * *

When evening eventually came, Luz found herself watching the sunset from the window in her room. It was something to help her focus. Keep her head on straight. 

There was a comfort, now that she looked, to seeing the Isles have its natural colours again. The reds, the yellows, oranges and browns of the flora as opposed to the dark greys and blacks. And there was definitely a comfort in knowing that the Cherubim weren’t able to watch them anymore. It was weird though, to remember that the plants were in some way, connected to the Cherubim. How in the Realm they were connected, that was another question entirely. Maybe it was just the Cherubim’s Magic that affected the plants, and was some sort of vessel that they used to observe the Isles. Or maybe something else was going on there. Who knew? Either way though, the bright colours being back did help Luz feel a bit more at ease. 

The sun set, and the sky turned from purple and orange, to dark blue and black, and the stars began to appear. They were different here. None of the constellations were the same on this side of the Realm. Which made sense, she supposed. But for some reason, it made her wonder about what other planets were like here. 

Still, there were plenty of things on her mind. And not even just her confused feelings towards Amity. 

Watching the sunset like this… It reminded her of Earth. Of her mother. 

It was one of the few similarities that the two worlds shared - The sight of stars come night-time. The question of what else was out there. That was a mystery both worlds had yet to figure out. That mystery was like a lifeline back to Earth. Back to her mother. 

Still a source of guilt for Luz. Now in more ways than one. 

Had she not brought up the fact she wanted to return to Earth to let her mother know she was okay… How would the situation she was in now be different? What other path would all of this have taken? If she had kept that to herself…

...If she had kept this to herself, Amity would have confessed the day before Valeween. But would that change the confusion Luz now felt? 

Probably not. 

But it was hard not to think about. 

So much had happened in such a little amount of time. So many things, stacked up against one another. So much… And barely any time to figure it all out. 

She glanced back into her room, and on the desk, spied her phone. Getting up, she went to the desk, picked it up, and went right back to her seat on the windowsill. She flipped through the videos file, and scanned over the old diary entries that she had made. Her diary entries. Plus the video that Gus had taken. She paused for a moment. Then closed the folder. 

Then hit the camera app, and hit record. 

“...Hey Mami.” She said. Her voice felt heavy. “So… Valeween’s over. I had a bit of an injury, but the Healers managed to fix it up. I’ve got some scars, but I’m fine with them. It’s not that bad…. It’s the emotional stuff that’s been an issue.” 

A glance out the window - She could see a few buildings in Bonesborough from this distance. Not a lot, and only some of the tall ones that peaked over the trees, but she could still see them. It was weird how much more light and colour they had than they did a few days ago. 

“Willow got a confession - From Boscha. I know. Weird. Boscha got hit by a Cherubim Ray, and just sort of… Spilled everything out. I’m still getting used to it. Boscha and me teamed up, and… Well, it’s weird. I don’t think she’s a bad person, not really, but after everything she did to me and Willow and Gus… I can’t forgive Boscha on Willow’s behalf. And I’m not gonna try and convince her to forgive Boscha either. She got the worst of it from her… I can’t even imagine what’s going through Willow’s head… Actually, forget that. I know exactly what’s going through her head. It’s… Pretty similar to what’s going through mine. I got a confession too. From Amity.” 

Her face returned to the phone. She could see herself on the screen. It was difficult to recognise the expression she had on her own face. 

“...I like Amity a lot, but I… I don’t know how I feel about her like that…. At least, I don’t think I do. It’s…” A small laugh escaped her. “It’s… Scary, y’know? Even though I know she likes me, figuring out how I feel about her, and what that means about me, about her, about us, it’s… It’s scary. Eda tried to help. She was in the same situation as me and Willow. And it’s how Willow’s dad’s got together. I guess this happens more than I thought. Eda says I should try to figure it out. And I know she’s right. I’m gonna… Do that. Tomorrow. I… I think I’ll go for a walk tomorrow. Try and get out of the house, see if that helps… Maybe someone’s seen Amity since Valeween. But I should figure out what I’m going to say to her first.” 

A sigh. 

“...I wish you knew I was safe, Mami. I wish that I could see you, and ask you for help. I think… I think you’d really like Amity. And I think you’d know what I should do. Sometimes I…” 

Another pause. 

“...Sometimes I wonder if I do already know, and if I’m just kidding myself. Because that's easier. Just a couple of days ago I wanted nothing more than to see Amity, when I thought I’d ruined our friendship… And… I wonder if she’s doing the same thing. Wherever she is. And if I’m just being selfish by not being honest with myself about things. But I… I don’t know.” 

Another sigh. 

“...I guess I’ll have to find out tomorrow. Maybe.” 

A final pause. 

“...I miss you, Mami. I’m still going to find my way home… But I’ve got things that I need to do here first.” 

And then, she ended the recording.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a very wind-down and low energy one, which I think I needed to do after the absolute hectic hell that was the last four chapters. Jumping right back into it again would have felt weird I think. 
> 
> You guys really seemed to enjoy the last chapter too - So thank you SO much for the response that chapter got. Seriously, I think I broke a few peoples brains. Also the story crossed 10,000 hits on Ao3, which I was really hoping to hit with an Owl House story at some point, so thank you all for that :D 
> 
> I’m actually pretty partial to CamilEda personally, but that isn’t within the scope of this fic, and I’m not breaking the scope of it to just throw that in here. Besides, I’m here for comrade Anarchist Bi-Owl Mom (ABOM. Huh.) who is down for dating Agender/NBs, so, here we go. A lot of confusion, a lot of feelings, and a lot of found family vibes going on here. Honestly, this chapter wasn’t even planned, I wrote this just to relax during the weekend more than anything, ‘cause next chapter is gonna be one of those “I really want to get it right” types of deals. So I hope that it’s still good regardless.
> 
> Next chapter, we’re getting right back into it - Operation “Luz figuring out what the hell she’s doing” is a-go - Hope to see you there!


	12. Advice

A single box. 

That was all that Amity had thought to move from her room for safekeeping. 

It was the one thing that if something, somehow, in some way went south, she wanted to keep safe, and had come up with a backup plan to keep safe, even when she hadn’t been planning to stay anywhere near Blight Manor in the first place. Just in case. 

She had left it under the bridge that led to Blight Manor the day before Valeween began, and retrieved it the day after Valeween ended. No one would think to look for it there. No one had. 

When she glanced at the remains of Blight Manor, she was glad that she had had the foresight to move it. 

Everything else in her room was easily replaceable. Her parents almost certainly had insured the Manor, and even if they hadn’t, it wouldn’t be an issue anyway. They had plenty of money. A few contractors from the Construction Coven, and purchasing of the materials needed - It would be rebuilt in no time. 

What was going to happen was that when they realised the state Blight Manor was in - Burned to the ground - and had reconstructed it, they would send a servant to her, Emira, and Edric each, have them write all their lost possessions on a scroll, and they would be replaced within a week. Certainly not out of love, but a simple desire to ensure they were content. Content children didn’t cause problems. Content children remained loyal. Content children obeyed. 

Of course, it didn’t work like that. Amity, Edric, and Emira were anything but loyal and content or obedient, but they all played along. Right now it was easier to. Pretty much whatever they wanted, they got, and there wasn’t a point to encroaching their parents’ wrath. Not now, anyway. 

One day there might be, but that wasn’t now. 

Everything that Amity lost in the fire was immaterial. Books, posters, clothes, some awards. She wasn’t even particularly fond of the room - No more than she was the rest of the house, anyway. It was all replaceable. 

The box wasn’t. What was in the box wasn’t. What it meant to her wasn’t replaceable. 

Couldn’t be bought in a store with money. Couldn’t be traded for. Couldn’t be attained in a material way. Because what was in there mattered to her, and to no one else. 

You couldn’t buy sentiment. 

Amity placed the box on the desk she sat at, and opened it up. One by one, the items came out, spread across the otherwise empty table. 

A stack of photos from her cork board. A Grom Queen tiara. And her diary. 

Of all her possessions, these were the ones that she wanted to look after. Make sure they were safe. Because these meant far more to her than any other object she owned. They were mementos of the things that she had come to care for in her life, more than anything else. 

Her friends. 

And Luz. 

Looking at all of them, Amity allowed herself a brief moment of thankfulness. These things were important to her, and she was happy to have saved them. Had had the foresight to save them. Because of what they represented, where they had come from, and what they meant to her. 

Her friends… They made her happy. 

Happier than she had felt in a long, long time. 

The pictures she used to decorate her room served to remind her how different her life was now that they were in her life. Pictures of her with her friends, in all manner of activity. Every morning, she’d wake up, and see them, and remind herself that things were different now. Better. Remind her of new friendships formed, and old friendships she had managed to repair. Waking up with them there reminded her that it wasn't just a dream she had had, but was real. Really real. 

Her diary was important to her too. It was all she had had for a long time to record her thoughts and feelings in, when she had no one else to turn to. It was a good tool to vent with, to scream when screaming aloud wasn’t an option. Writing in it helped her to put her own thoughts and feelings into perspective. It helped her figure things out. Rationalise them into words that could be reflected on. Even with her friends, the diary helped her when she didn’t want to burden other people with the cavalcade of thoughts that got into her head when she thought about things for far longer than she needed to. 

In some ways, it had almost become something of a companion to her, when she had felt like she had few, if any, others.

And the Grom tiara...

…That reminded her of Luz. 

Just Luz. 

Of an incredible time, with an incredible person, who she somehow managed to fall for even more. 

And who… 

Tears came flowing back down her face again, even though Amity tried - She tried so, so hard - to keep them in. There was no one even around to see, but at this point, she tried to hold it in because she was so, so sick of crying. At the rate she was going, she was going to run out of fluids before she ran out of tears. They escaped her anyway though, and what little composure she had managed to regain shattered.

Her hands gripped onto her hair, and her face fell until it was buried against the table. No one could see her, but she felt the need to hide from the rest of the world anyway. The tears ran off her cheeks, and fell onto the table. 

What she had always been afraid of was now the reality she found herself in. 

Luz knew exactly how she felt. What she wanted. And how much of a selfish person she was underneath all the fake layers of pretence that she was something she wasn’t. She knew exactly what Amity was. And it wasn’t like Willow or Gus would be interested in being friends with her if Luz wasn’t. It wasn’t like Luz would make them give up being friends with her - That was just the choice they would make. If given the choice between someone like Luz, and someone like Amity, it wasn’t a choice. 

Amity would make the same choice if she was in that situation.

Feeling that _this_ \- these objects she had in front of her now, all she had to her name - would be all she would have to remember of the life she had been able to actually enjoy, with the people who made her happy, and the person she adored… It was overwhelming. All encompassing. She… She… 

_She didn’t want to lose Luz. Not like this._

But… Why would Luz want to be friends with someone who was as selfish as she was? Why would she want to even be around her now that she knew? Never mind the idea that maybe she… 

...Losing her to the Human World would have been so much easier. 

_Not like this._

* * *

Ever since the start of Valeween, Bonesborough had felt like a different town entirely. 

As it set up defences and walls, people gathered weapons, and everything in between, the feel of the town changed. It had to by necessity. As people trained, and got themselves ready for what was to come, it felt like it had been converted into a fortress made for war. 

Yet simultaneously, it felt more like a community than it ever had before, in a way that Luz had never experienced in her home dimension. Certain services had been completely free of charge to help with the preparations, individuals had put their various differences aside for the betterment of the community as a whole, and everyone worked with a sense of purpose, to a unified goal, and all knowing that their contributions mattered. 

Now the threat of Valeween and the Cherubim was over, and things were slowly starting to return to normal. 

Lots of the efforts to take down the walls and temporary defences were led by the Construction Coven, who moved the buildings and walls as and where they were now needed, stored until such a time as they were needed again. Other Covens assisted too, taking down the various defences they had set up. Such as the Plant Covens removing their sentry plants from rooftops and street ways, and the Illusion Covens removing all their various illusions from the city. 

Prices began to reappear in certain stores, mostly the absolutely unnecessary ones. Certain things like food were still being served free of charge, but that would change with time too. The marketplace was already starting to rebuild itself, and vendors were already selling their various goods. Not that they had a lot of customers, but that too would change with time. Someone had to be there to kickstart the return to normalcy, eventually. 

Perhaps the most obvious change was the sense of social tension Luz noticed.

Before Valeween, there had been an odd mixture of dread of what was to come, but also of unity and togetherness that inspired people to act. Everyone was working towards a shared goal, and was working in spite of whatever personal feelings they held towards those around them. 

Now, those people who had once worked together seemed to be avoiding one another. And it was honestly hard to tell if that was because something had happened between them involving a Cherubim, or because they had held one another in contempt, and now no longer had a reason to be around one another. 

That wasn’t the universal case though - Some people seemed to get on better now that the Valeween threat was done. Bonds forged through fire, maybe. In either case though, it was undeniable that there was a dynamic shift in the social order of the Isles. It made Bonesborough feel… Different.

Luz had to admit - She had actually come to like the sense of community and comradery that had come with knowing the Cherubim were coming. She hadn’t liked the threat that had inspired such a community shift or the anxious atmosphere that surrounded it all, granted, but the community itself had been… Actually kind of nice. 

Maybe that could be the default way that the Isles worked, someday. 

Without the anxiety. 

Following on from her thoughts yesterday, Luz had gone into Bonesborough, not with any particular purpose, other than a change of scenery. Her leg felt better now - A slight stiffness, but that really was it - and she could walk without any pain. She had been stuck in the Owl House all day yesterday, with all these thoughts bouncing around in her head, with no way of focusing them, and with nothing else to do. She hadn’t been able to rely on her friends either. Gus had told her that he was busy helping his parents with the same kids that he had been tutoring earlier in the week, while Willow never replied to any messages at all. Apparently, she had never even seen the messages, according to the Scroll messenger application. 

A change of scenery was all Luz could ask for at this point. 

So she wandered, aimlessly, just looking around the town and seeing what was going on. There was still a sense of jubilation and celebration from people who were happy to have seen the town fight off the Cherubim, though that was contrasted by those who had had their lives affected by the Cherubim this time around, and weren’t in a mood for celebrating. How long would it take for things to fully return to normal? Or at least a semblance of normal. 

For some reason, Luz had a feeling that it would take months. 

Some parts might never feel the same again. 

Certainly, in fact, some things would never be the same again. 

Her mind wandered to Amity. 

Part of her had hoped to see Amity while she was in the city. That they would run into one another, and just… Talk. Try to figure things out. But another part hoped that she didn’t, because she… She really didn’t have a clue what to say. She still didn’t even know how she really felt about Amity. Even though that had been on her mind non-stop since yesterday.

In her diary entry to her mother, Luz had mentioned that she wondered if she did know, and was just lying to herself that she didn’t know because doing that was easier. That particular thought had stuck out to her, because the more she thought about it, the more she really didn’t know if that was what was happening here. 

Amity was special to her. All the effort that she had put in, all the work she had done to make things right with the people she had messed up with, and all the work that she had put into becoming a better person - It made Luz appreciate her in a number of ways that were difficult to list. That didn’t make Gus and Willow any less special to her, but Amity…

Was… _Just special._

There wasn’t any other way of describing it. But what did that mean, exactly? 

Luz suddenly came to a stop. A sight in front of her made her stop. 

Because it filled her with anger. 

_The Emperor's Coven was back._

Three of them were on this particular path, and were walking down the road as civilians made way for them. Each was armed with a Staff, clean-pressed uniforms that looked almost new, and they didn’t bother to so little as look around at those who watched them. Masked faces were forward fronting, and utterly silent as they walked along their path. 

From the looks and glances that other people were giving them, Luz guessed that they had only just arrived earlier today. They were on the usual patrol routes that they took during peaceful times, and they carried themselves the exact same way, as if nothing had happened over the last few days. 

The looks they got weren’t those of the usual admiration and respect that they commanded. Right now, the wounds of Valeween were fresh. A lot of people seemed angry, or at the very least, felt their return this early was premature, and was tasteless. 

Lilith had explained to Luz days ago that the Emperor’s Coven left the streets during Valeween, apparently for security reasons. They had left Bonesborough, and every town on the Isles to fend for themselves. 

Now here they were, back on the streets, like nothing had happened? 

Of course, that would be a part of things returning to normal - The Emperor’s Coven’s ‘duty’ was to patrol the Isles, keep the peace, and enforce the Emperor’s will. They would of course return. It wasn’t like Valeween had gotten rid of them forever. 

Yet to have no shame at all, and to still be carrying themselves with that posture of pride that they always seemed to do? After everything that had happened, and everything that could have been avoided if the so-called best of the best had done what they were supposedly meant to, and actually protected the people of the Isles?

_They had the gall to return like nothing had happened?_

Anger was normally hot - A boiling red flame that carried itself deep in the gut, which made blood feel warm, and air feel cold. That was how Luz had always felt when she was angry. Hell, that was how she had felt when she had faced Lilith and against the Emperor. 

This though, was just an ice cold fury. 

In the back of her mind, she knew it wasn’t the fault of the individual members of the Coven, so she bit her tongue - Hard - to not scream at them about how the one time they were actually needed, they had run off. That if they had done the duty they were supposed to do, then maybe she and Amity wouldn’t be in the mess they were in now. That if they lived up to what the Emperors Coven was supposed to be, maybe the Cherubim wouldn’t have ever been an issue to begin with. 

But it was hard to not feel that transposition of hate towards them. Because that was what this was. 

_Hate._

If it was directed mostly at the Coven, or the Emperor himself, Luz honestly didn’t know. 

Truthfully, she didn’t know if this was just her looking for someone to blame at this point. 

She did know if she didn’t get out of sight right now though, she was going to do something that she would later regret. So she backed into the crowd, and aimed to put as many people, streets, walls, and buildings between her and anyone in the Emperor’s Coven as she could. 

That particular strategy eventually led her near the town centre - A place that was equally as full of people, but thankfully, without any sign of the Emperor’s Coven. Not yet anyway. People wandered freely, able to gather in groups and speak to one another again without the time pressure or sense of duty to rush them along. It seemed to be an area of the town where those who hadn’t been affected by the Cherubim directly had wound up congregating, since there wasn’t the same standoffish atmosphere that other parts of the town exhibited. There was a noticeably lighter tone here than there was in other sections of the town. 

The centre was as much an economic hub as the marketplace, with plenty of stalls and stores surrounding the place on a normal day. People gathered here for a variety of reasons, from work, to it being an easy location to meet others in, to local politics, so it was as good a place as any to set up shop. Luz wandered past a couple of the few already re-opened stalls, glancing at a few of the wares they were selling in spite of having less than no interest in actually buying anything. It was just a nice change of scenery more than anything. 

One of the stores around the plaza was something that to Luz, looked to be the Boiling Isles equivalent of a café - A small building on a slightly elevated platform, which had a dozen or so seats spread out to allow people to sit outside with their drinks or snacks, or whatever else they had purchased. It reminded Luz of cute little coffee stores that she could find if she looked around her town back home, and of the bigger, more retail chain ones, kind of merged into one sort of weird conglomeration - It had the aesthetics and seemed to have the heart of one of those smaller places, but the space and capital for a larger space, like the retail types. The café was called Heran’s Hut according to one of the signs, and it was one of the places that Luz had always kept telling herself she would actually go into one of these days, but never seemed to do. 

Walking past it today though, it wasn't the sign, or the smells that brought its attention to Luz. It was one of its patrons, sitting on one of the outside seats on their own, staring into space while gently pushing an empty cup between her hands. 

Luz blinked. And then, she allowed herself to smile, and call over, “Willow!” 

Hearing her name called out, Willow snapped out of her daze, and looked in the direction her name had come from. Clearly, she was surprised when she saw her friend standing just a few meters away. “Luz?” A smile then appeared, and she got onto her feet. “Luz!” 

Quickly, Luz made her way to Willow, finding herself happy to see a familiar face. She hadn’t seen any of her friends since Valeween ended, and seeing one now… It was nice. 

As soon as the two of them were next to one another, they pulled one another into a hug. “I’ve been so worried!” Willow said as soon as they hugged. “I meant to come see you at the Owl House but there’s been a lot going on here. I haven’t had time to even check my Scroll!” 

That explained why she hadn’t responded to any of the messages she had gotten, Luz thought to herself. She lived a lot closer to the action than Luz did, and there was still a lot of work being done to make things back to the way they were before Valeween. It made sense she’d been recruited into it. “It’s okay. I… Don’t think I would have been good company anyway.” 

They both let go of the other, and Willow took her seat again. Happy as they were to see one another, there was a brief moment of awkwardness as both of them thought of what to say to the other - Both of them had been through a… Difficult Valeween, to say the least. It felt like even talking about anything else would have been...

…Awkward. 

That didn’t mean that either of them knew what to say though. Or how to bring it up tactfully. 

“...How’s your leg?” Willow asked after a few seconds of silence. She seemed surprised that there was no cast, or that Luz didn’t need crutches, or anything like that. “I thought that you would have still been healing.” 

“Nah. Whatever the Healers did pretty much sorted me out. And the potions they gave me helped with the pain.” She tapped the side of her previously injured leg, like it would prove her point. When Amity had injured her leg a few months ago, she’d had to spend a few days in a cast, so Luz just assumed that whatever she had been given was made of far stronger stuff than what Amity had been given. Or that her injury had looked worse, but wasn’t quite as bad as Amity’s. “It’s still a bit stiff and apparently I’m gonna have some scars, but physically I’m fine.” 

“...And emotionally?” 

The Human blinked and paused for a moment. She took a glance away from Willow, and looked out of the sitting area, and into Bonesborough. There were some workers who were taking down another one of the spiked-logs that made up the palisade wall. It was observable because the log was tall, and towered over the nearby buildings. Luz watched it fall, before she let out a sigh. 

“...I don’t know.” She answered, honestly. “It’s been…” She trailed off. She didn’t know how to explain it. 

Willow nodded, and waited for a few seconds before she spoke again. “I’m… Guessing you haven’t heard from Amity.” 

“No.” Luz shook her head. “Not a word.” 

“Have you tried to reach her?” 

“...No. I don’t know what to say. I… I don’t even know how I feel. I…” Luz paused for a moment. “...Wait, how the heck do you know something happened between me and Amity?” 

“Er… Aside from it being pretty much the only logical conclusion?” Willow said, with a slightly awkward chuckle. “I mean, she was hit by a Cherubim Ray, and now neither of you are talking to each other - Something must have happened. It’s… Kind of obvious, Luz. Skara figured it out and she barely even knows you.” 

“...Fair enough.” Luz groaned slightly. For some reason, it felt… Embarrassing to know that all it would take was a vague understanding of what was going on, and people would be able to hazard a pretty decent guess at the situation itself. 

A gentle, teasing smile appeared on Willow’s face, but she then shook her head. “That’s... Not how I know though.” 

“...Aaand now I’m confused again.” 

“To be honest with you, Amity talked to me about how she felt about you before… You had your fight.” When Luz’s expression turned to surprise, Willow added on, “You know, the day before Valeween. After training?” 

“...She told you?” That… Honestly threw Luz off for a moment. Her mind went back to that particular night, and she remembered how Willow had called her. But Willow had claimed to not have a clue what was going on back then. So, she had been lying that whole time? 

“Well I… Already figured it out.” Willow admitted. “Amity isn’t as good at hiding her feelings as she likes to think. She told me she was going to tell you how she felt though.” 

“...And that's why you asked how it went and called when I told you about the fight.” 

“Right.” A look of brief guilt came to Willow’s face. “Sorry I… You know. Lied to you back then. I didn’t - It would have been worse if I told you the real reason I called. I don’t like secrets but Amity’s secrets aren’t mine to give up.” 

Luz just nodded. “I understand, you don’t need to apologise for anything.” That made perfect sense. If anything, Luz would have been upset if Willow had revealed the truth back then. It would have been a serious violation of trust. And Willow wasn’t like that. “...Have… Has Amity contacted you at all?” 

“No.” Willow then paused for just a second, and seemed to pick her next words carefully. “...I have… Seen her.” 

“You have?!” 

“Briefly.” She clarified, quickly. “And I do mean I _saw_ her. I didn’t _speak_ to her, I just saw her a few hours ago, but she was gone before I could say a word to her.” 

“Where?!” 

“It was just one of the streets in town. She’s long gone by now. I don’t know where she was going, and even if I did… I don’t think that would be much different from telling you her secrets without her permission. I… I couldn’t do that.” 

For a moment, Luz opened her mouth to argue - But then, she closed it. Willow didn’t know where she was anymore, so it wouldn’t make a difference. And she was right - There wasn’t a huge difference in this context. Not really. 

Amity hadn’t made any attempt to get in contact with Luz. For all she knew, Amity didn’t want to see her. If Willow told Luz where she was, and that against that wish, even if it was indirectly, was there really a difference between revealing Amity’s secrets against her will, and forcing her into a position where she would have to deal with the subject before she was ready, or even able? 

Especially when Luz knew why Amity wanted to be alone, why she hadn’t made any effort to speak to her. 

Or at least, thought she might know. 

Realistically, the outcomes were the same. In both instances, it was going against, at the very least, the best interpretation of Amity’s will that they could figure out. 

Cherubim could force people to talk. Humans and Witches couldn’t. 

Wouldn’t. 

At least, Willow wouldn’t. 

“...Yeah. I guess not.” Luz slumped her shoulders, and sighed. She wouldn’t force Amity to talk either. 

And Luz… She wanted to know what she was going to say before she saw Amity again. She didn’t want to finally be in front of Amity, and realize that she had no idea what to say. 

That could… Only make things worse. 

“Was… Did she look okay?” 

“Physically, she looked fine.” 

That was a relief. 

Another moment of silence passed. 

“...So, you knew Amity… Liked me?”

“...Yeah. She has for… A pretty long time now, I think.” 

“...I didn’t know.” 

“...How couldn’t you? She’s… She’s head over heels for you. She’s not good at hiding it.” 

“It’s not - I don’t… Never mind.” Luz shook her head. “Just…” 

Thoughts of Earth returned to her. 

“Sorry.” Willow apologised. “I didn’t mean to sound… Rude.”

“For… Forget about it. Do you want to, I don't know, hang out? I could use a distraction to be honest... Or some help with Amity.” 

Willow’s pupils darted to the corners of her eyes, trying to avoid contact with Luz’s. “I… I would help, but I'm sort of already here with someone and... Dealing with a few things myself.” 

Luz blinked, and glanced at the table. Not only was there no one around, the table that she was at was fairly isolated, so it wasn’t even like she was with a group that hadn’t had enough seats. “You uh, kinda seem like you're on your own.” Luz pointed out, raising an eyebrow. “Are you waiting for someone?”

Almost as if on cue, Luz heard a pair of footsteps behind her, and heard them stop just as quickly. Willow’s ears perked up, and she turned to the source. Luz also turned around to see who they had come from.

_Boscha._

Both she and Luz just stared at one another for a few seconds, completely unsure of what to do or say. 

The pink haired girl was just standing there, with a look of surprise clearly visible on her face, and in all three of her eyes. In her hands, she had two drinks that were placed within a disposable cup holder. She had just stopped, dead in her tracks, the moment that she realised that it was Luz who was talking to Willow, and not, as she had first thought from a distance, some stranger that Willow must have known. 

Meanwhile, Luz just stared right back at her, her mouth almost falling completely ajar. It didn’t take even a few seconds for her to put two and two together. Of all the people she could have been here with, _Willow was here with Boscha._

Eventually, it was Boscha who broke the silence, with a single word. “...Human.” 

“...Boscha.” Luz said back. 

After everything that had happened between Luz and Boscha on Valeween Night - Fighting and working together, protecting one another, and Boscha helping Luz to save her friends when she had no personal stake in the matter, the Human would confess - She wasn’t entirely sure how to interact with Boscha. She didn’t have particularly positive feelings towards Boscha, that was for sure - They weren’t _friends._

But everything that Boscha had done to help, and the way she had put herself on the line like she did… 

That counted for something. At least, it did to Luz. But it didn’t erase what she had done in the past. 

It put Luz in the weird position of having to both respect and be thankful to Boscha for her help, but still not knowing what to make of her as a person, while also having to acknowledge that her actions had spoken for themselves as to her character, but also put that up against the fact that Boscha had made her and her friends’ lives hell in the past. 

A confusing mess of thoughts and contradictory opinions that translated to not having a clue what to make of Boscha anymore. 

And if her confessions during Valeween were anything to go by, Boscha felt the exact same way about Luz.

Boscha’s eyes didn’t remain focused on Luz though, and shortly turned to Willow’s after a few seconds. Willow had a certain… Expression that was hard to read. The closest thing that Luz could compare it to was exhaustion.

After switching glances between Willow and Luz a couple of times, Boscha cleared her throat, and addressed Willow. “Er…. I can like…” She gestured behind her, indicating that she could leave her and Luz alone for a while if she wanted. 

Willow just nodded, indicating that that was what she wanted. Boscha turned to leave, but as she did, for a second, she and Luz looked at one another, both sharing conflicting looks at the other. There was a look of frustration and if Luz didn’t know any better, _fear and anxiety_ in the way Boscha looked at her. The Potions Witch tore away first, and awkwardly made her way past Luz, and a couple of other seated customers until she was out of earshot. 

The second she was out of earshot, Luz turned around, placing - And very nearly slamming - her hands on the table as she faced Willow. ”Okay, I have… So many questions. What’re you doing here with _Boscha?_ is she like, blackmailing you or something?” 

“...Blackmailing me by buying me drinks?” Willow’s eyebrow raised. 

“She - She could be a very polite blackmailer for all I know!”

Shaking her head, Willow just let out a heavy sigh, and pinched the bridge of her nose. “She’s not blackmailing me, Luz, it's... I invited her here.”

Luz blinked. 

“You did _what now?”_

“You heard me.” The Plant Witch replied simply. She took one of the drinks that Boscha had brought, and took a short sip of it. When she exhaled, a gentle cloud of water condensation left her mouth. She watched it fade before she spoke again. “We... talked for a bit.”

“And?”

“...I guess we're still talking to be honest. There’s a… Lot of stuff that we need to talk about. We just needed a break and she went to get us drinks before you showed up.”

Luz glanced towards Boscha, who by now had made her way towards the entrance way to the seating area that Luz had _completely ignored_ in favour of just just climbing over the railings. She was trying to look inconspicuous, going through her Scroll and focusing her two main eyes on that, while her third eye was clearly watching them. Even at this distance, Luz could see that same anxiety in the third eye again. 

The last time Luz had seen Boscha while she was still conscious, it had been after being hit by a Cherubim Ray, and had more or less confessed to being in love with Willow. That still surreal experience was still etched into Luz’s mind. Clearly, Boscha wasn’t as detached as she liked to act. And towards Willow of all people… Luz hadn’t known how Willow would react to… Any of that. 

_This though?_ Seeing them here together, and hearing that _Willow_ had been the one to invite _Boscha?_

_That she hadn’t even remotely seen coming._

All she could do was shove her hands into her pockets, and turn back to Willow. “...Guess I'm not the only one having girl troubles, huh.” 

“I - It's not like that." Willow quickly told her before she took another sip of her drink. “There's... A lot of stuff we need to work through before we can... Even _think_ about anything like that.” 

After everything that Boscha had done in the past, that felt like an understatement.

“But… I guess if I were being honest, it…” The Plant Track Witch’s cheeks turned a light shade of red. “...Is a bit hard to not be a bit... Charmed by what she said while she was affected by the Cherubim Ray.”

Luz took another glance at Boscha. She had to admit, what Boscha had said to Willow had been… She wasn’t sure what word to use. Calling it sweet would have been sugar-coating it a bit - Pun absolutely intended - but it showed _something_ about Boscha, she supposed. It showed that there had been some level of introspection on Boscha’s part. She had thought about the things she had done. 

Maybe that was why Willow had reported that Boscha had become less and less of a pain for her to deal with, and even been outright friendly with her on a couple of occasions. Because of those feelings she had, and the reflection that she had undergone. 

It was the fact that it was unquestioningly honest that gave Luz this perspective though. Had it not been for Boscha being hit by a Cherubim, she didn’t know what she’d think.

At the end of the day though, it didn’t really matter what she thought. 

What mattered was what Willow thought. What Willow felt. 

“...Are you interested in her?” Luz asked, turning back to her friend. “‘Cause you know I love you, Willow, and am behind you no matter what, but I am gonna be keeping an eye out for... Boscha - y... ness if you two do end up going out.”

A laugh escaped Willow at that, and her cheeks went a bit redder before she settled down. “I... I don't know... But I want to find out. That... That's the least I can do, isn't it?”

“...You don't owe her anything, you know.” 

While Willow was completely capable of making her own decisions, and if this was what she wanted to do, Luz would back her up and be there to support her, and put her own feelings towards Boscha aside if need be. She didn’t have the right to tell Willow how to live her life. But it felt… Important that she reminded her she didn’t owe Boscha anything, and didn’t need to do anything she didn’t want to do. After all the treatment Boscha had thrown her way, Willow didn’t need to feel any sort of obligation towards her. Even if it hurt Boscha, that wasn’t on Willow to shoulder the burden of. Even if Boscha had helped them on Valeween Night, that didn’t entitle her to any of this. Even if it went against some… Weird Boiling Isles tradition that Luz hadn’t heard of. Traditions were dumb anyway. 

She shook her head though. “I know I don't. But… No matter which way I look at it, Boscha helped us when she had no reason to. That says something about her. How she’s changed, even before she got hit…” A brief pause. “I _want_ to at least hear her out. I want to do this. It… It matters to me.” 

At that, Luz just nodded in understanding. That was all she needed to hear. 

“ ...And you know you don't owe Amity anything either.” 

Luz stopped nodding, and froze. “That - That’s a bit… Different, don’t you think?” 

“We both got confessions, didn’t we? I think it’s pretty similar.” 

“Boscha treated you really badly though! For a long time!”

“Luz, Amity _literally tried to get you dissected.”_ Willow deadpanned, remembering the first day she met Luz very clearly, and how badly that almost ended. “I know you and Amity are friends, but that doesn’t mean you owe her any more than I owe Boscha.” She let out a small sigh. “You give good advice, Luz. And don’t take this the wrong way, but… Maybe you should try taking your own for once?” 

Luz blinked, and raised an eyebrow. “How d’you mean? 

“It… It kind of seems like you’re not doing what you’d suggest someone else do if they were in your position.” Though she tried to explain it, Willow struggled. “I mean… How do I put this… Do you remember that time when we thought Gus had a crush on that Grudgby player?” 

That was a… Interesting memory, Luz shuddered as she recalled how… Poorly that whole situation went. In like, _literally every conceivable way_. “...In my defence, that was your fault.” 

“In my defence, I’d never seen Gus act that way.” Willow defended, though she did have a small smirk. “But do you remember what you suggested Gus do?” 

“I… Told him he should go up and talk to them. To see how he felt, and then to work from there.” 

“So… Why haven’t you done that with Amity?” 

“I…” Luz paused. “...I want to know what to say when I see her.” 

“Do you think I had any idea what I was going to say to Boscha when I invited her here?” 

That… Was true, Luz would concede. If anything, Willow would have had a harder time figuring out what to say to Boscha. It wasn’t like they had a backlog of friendship to call back on to ease the tension. 

Her next reason came. “I don’t even know how _I_ feel about her!” 

“I don’t know how I feel about Boscha. But I know I wasn’t going to figure it out by just… Thinking about it all the time. I would have gotten cold feet.”

Another fair point - But that - That was different - Wasn’t it? 

_Was it?_

...Was that what she was doing? Just getting cold feet? 

“She… She hasn’t - We don’t know if she wants to even see me… I don’t even know where she is...” More than anything, this was the reason that had Luz not actually approach Amity in any way. She didn’t know if Amity even wanted to be around her right now. And she didn’t want to force that. 

“...Well, there’s only one way to find that out, you know.” Willow nodded towards Boscha. Still on her Scroll, though it was obvious she was only pretending to be using it. The message Willow wanted got through loud and clear though. “There’s a reason I had to invite Boscha here, and not have her invite me. She wasn’t going to. If you were in her position, would you?” 

…

...In just a few moments, Willow had more or less deconstructed every false pretence that Luz had used to justify herself not seeking Amity out actively. That was what they were. Constructions she had built to justify not doing anything right now. 

Because the truth was, she was afraid to. 

Afraid of how badly she could mess it up. 

Afraid of what it meant. 

Afraid of… Everything that could happen. 

But Willow was right - Luz wouldn’t be the one to approach Amity if their positions were reversed. She would have been way too afraid to. She had too much experience with that ending horrifically. 

And Willow had gotten a confession from someone who had made her life far, far, far less easier than anything Amity had done to Luz, and she was still finding the courage to actually deal with the situation. Open to what could happen. Ready to face the consequences of if things went wrong. 

Luz had been waiting for what felt like the perfect moment, and the perfect sentence to enter her mind. 

Those two things would never arrive though. 

She’d always find an excuse to believe they weren’t there. 

...And maybe that was the trap Eda had fallen into as well. 

“...Maybe you’re right.” Luz said, quietly. 

Another moment of silence fell between the two of them. 

“...I should go.” 

“Are you okay?” Willow asked, looking up at Luz. A worried expression set in. “I didn’t mean to -“ 

“Please stop apologising, Willow.” Luz gave her a smile, but exhaled all the same. “I… I think you might be right. And I need to… Figure out what I’m going to do about it. Plus…” Her head gestured towards Boscha. “You’ve got your own problems to deal with.” 

Willow got up onto her feet again, but she nodded at Luz’s words. There wasn’t really much else to say at this point. 

“...Yknow, if her personality wasn’t as smooth as sandpaper, she’d actually be sort of cute, I guess.” 

For a second, Willow was confused. “Wait, do you mean Boscha?” 

“Yeah. I dunno what you’re thinking, but…. If she did a… Lot of making up for the way she treated you… I dunno. Maybe I could see it.”

“...Maybe.” 

"...Be careful, okay? Let me know if you need anything or if she starts being... Boscha." 

Both of them embraced one another in a hug again. It was weird to think about - Both of them had been affected by Valeween in the same way, but had come up with very different strategies of dealing with what came next. And it was arguable about which one of them had the more difficult job - Willow, figuring out how to deal with the sudden confession of someone who had made life harder, or Luz, who had to deal with the confession of one of her closest friends. 

Of the two of them though, Luz couldn’t deny, she felt like Willow had the better strategy. 

She was a braver person than the Human was. 

And Luz intended to learn from that. 

Finally, the two of them separated, and Luz made her way to exit the platform of the outdoor section - This time, the proper way. That brought her within a meter of Boscha. 

Then, she stopped. And the two of them looked at one another. 

It felt like… She should say something. In so many books, films, anime and everything else, if something like this happened, someone close to the confessee would tell the confessor to not hurt their friend. To warn them not to mess with their feelings. To let them know that if this was some sort of joke, there would be consequences. 

But this wasn’t one of those pieces of media. And Luz didn’t feel she had the right to say anything like that. This was Willow’s situation to deal with, and she didn’t intend to interfere unless it became prescient to do so,and it certainly was not now. That, and she knew Boscha wasn’t playing a game. This wasn’t some sort of long-con plan to mess with Willow. 

At least if the Cherubim had been good for one thing, it was eliminating that doubt. 

And it was… Honestly kind of hard to still hold Boscha in that universal contempt anymore. Again, Luz didn’t know what to make of Boscha now. 

So she ended up saying the only thing she could think to say to anyone in this situation. 

“...Good luck with her.”

It clearly hadn’t been what Boscha had expected to hear from Luz, because an expression of surprise took hold. Luz saw it before she turned away again, and began to make her way down the steps, already trying to figure out what the heck she was going to message Amity. 

Because she’d already made up her mind. Willow wasn’t succumbing to fear or anxiety, and Luz wouldn’t either. She was going to approach Amity. Even if she didn’t know what to say. 

Thinking about it wasn’t helping, and hadn’t helped for two days now. 

Maybe just going for it would be better. 

“Try the library.” 

Luz had just hit the final step when Boscha spoke, and she turned around to look back up at the three-eyed girl. Her hands were tucked into her jacket’s pockets, and her eyes were all looking in the direction of Bonesborough’s library. 

“What?” 

“You’re looking for Amity, right? I heard she got hit by a Cherubim while you were trying to help her, and it’s not exactly difficult to figure out what she said to you.” 

Okay, the number of people who could just put these things together was starting to become a little alarming to Luz. _Did - Did everyone know?!_

“Whenever Amity wanted to get away from the rest of our shit, she went to the library to be alone.” Boscha explained. One of her eyebrows raised. “Not... Entirely sure how that worked. It’s a library, there are other people there. I thought she would have gone home. But that's where she went when she didn’t want to be around us.” She shrugged. “It’s the best I can offer.” 

It took a couple of seconds, but the pieces did come together in Luz’s mind. She knew exactly why Amity didn’t go home when she needed time to herself - Her siblings in particular weren’t the type to leave her alone. Especially not until fairly recently. 

_That left her secret room in the library._

If there was anywhere Luz could think that Amity might be, that would be it. 

“...Right. Right, got it.” She nodded. “...Thanks, Boscha.” 

“Good luck, Huma - “ Boscha paused, and then exhaled. “...Luz.” 

Without further word, Boscha made her way back to the table Willow was at. If she were being honest, Luz would confess to an overwhelming curiosity as to what the two of them would talk about, what questions both of them would ask, and… Well, everything. This wasn’t a development she had been able to predict. And she couldn’t predict how it would end. It was… Interesting. That was all there really was to it. 

But she wouldn’t eavesdrop, even if she didn’t have something else that she needed to do that was far more important. She pulled out her Scroll from her pocket, found Amity’s contact information, and began to type a message. 

_‘Amity, It’s Luz. I - ‘_

Delete. 

_‘Are you - ‘_

Delete. 

_‘Amity are you - ‘_

Delete.

Luz took a deep breath. She was thinking too hard again. She exhaled, and tried again. 

_‘Amity, I know that this is awkward and I don’t know if you even want to see me, but I think we need to talk. We don’t have to if you don’t want to, but I really want to sort this out. Is there somewhere we could meet? Face to face.’_

She read through it just once. 

Then she hit send, before she could change her mind. 

Another inhale, another exhale. 

And she began to make her way to the library, though she would confess - She had a feeling Amity hadn’t spent the last two nights in a room in the library. And she didn’t feel like she was going to find her there now. 

But it was the only lead she had. 

And maybe she’d get lucky.

That would be nice, for a change.

* * *

There was a small comfort to this location, Amity felt. The shade. The sight. The sentiment. It was all here. Plus, it was one of the few places that hadn’t been affected by the Cherubim’s Magic, due to its nature. For some reason, that felt… Reassuring.

That was sentiment talking, though. 

Her tears had dried up long ago. She didn’t even have the energy to cry anymore. If she did, she felt like her eyes were going to bleed. Maybe she had just run out of fluids to cry anyway. It didn’t mean she felt any better though. 

Now, all she could do was sit there, and hug her knees against her chest. And wonder what was supposed to come next. 

As it turned out, the pinging noise of her Scroll. It wasn’t the first one she had gotten today. Half a dozen people had tried to get in touch with her, and she had ignored them all.

Maybe she had gotten more bored than she realized, because this time, she actually looked at her Scroll. 

And felt her heart stop when she saw it was Luz. 

_Then she read the message._   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a… Difficult chapter for me to write actually. I’ve had the scene with Willow, Boscha, and Luz in mind since the story was in the planning stage, and it was surprisingly difficult to get onto paper. But I’ve edited it a few times and I think I’m happy with the end result - Though this was going to be one single chapter originally, I decided to split it into two to keep the points concise. Next chapter will be a fair bit shorter as a result - By which I mean about 2000 words. The good news - You’re getting it tomorrow :D 
> 
> You can cancel me if you like, but I do find Boschlow a really interesting dynamic and if done well, can be immensely cute. Lumity is fun and adorable, but Boschlow is just plain interesting to me. Though I mostly blame the fandom for this and for ruining me as a Human being : D 
> 
> There’s a time and a place for those “force two people into a room and make them discuss their feelings” - Hell, I did it in this very story - But I don’t always think that's healthy because that can cause a whole cavalcade of emotional issues down the line. It’s why I subverted it a bit with this story. And Luz has a lot of doubt and drama going on in her head that makes her second guess herself - I’ve done a lot of this too. Basically at this point I’m working out a lot of my own shit through this poor child :D 
> 
> I think we’re going to end up ending this chapter on a solid 15 or 16 chapters, which my OCD appreciates - So, for those of you who want a resolution - We’re in the home stretch now. Get yourselves ready, and I’ll see you next time - See you!


	13. Because

Somehow, Luz found it weird that the Bonesborough Library was already open again this soon after Valeween. 

Keeping it open until the last minute before Valeween Night - That she could understand. There would be no shortage of people who were curious about the Cherubim, what to expect on the night itself, and knowing everything that there was to know about the invaders would be beneficial, both for veterans of the event, and those who were about to experience their first. Understanding the history of the event, how previous efforts had succeeded and failed, and learning new methods and tricks of how to handle the invasion would be vital too. The defences were only as strong as their defenders, after all. Indeed, the building had seen a surge of activity in the days leading up the Valeween Night, as people looked for any advantage the records might be able to give them. There was always the possibility of learning something new. 

It being open so soon after the event had passed though, for some reason, that just seemed odd to Luz. With so much reconstruction, renovation, and labour work to be done to get Bonesborough back to the way it was before the invasion… She just sort of assumed that a place of leisure or academia like a library would be closed for longer, as people would be prioritising getting the city back in proper working order first. That was how things would usually work back on Earth. 

But not only was she wrong in that assumption, it seemed like the exact opposite had happened - It looked more busy than ever before. 

Fond as she was of books, Luz had spent a fair bit of time in the library since arriving on the Isles, reading up on the history, seeing if she could learn anything about Glyphs, or just seeing what the literature was like here. She was here often enough that she could recognize the groups of people that were there regularly, buried in books the same way that she often was. And many of them were there today too, but there were lots of people who she had never seen there before as well. Groups of people who never professed an interest in books, and even some people she recognised from Hexside, who outright despised them, were all here. Some were reading, as was intended in a library, and some were using it more as a general hang out area, taking up the Crystal Balls section, or just wandering around in small groups, with no real destination in mind.

Louder too - Normally the librarians were a bit more active when it came to making sure that people followed the rule of being quiet, but they were being a lot more permissive of sound today. They only really seemed to be getting involved whenever someone broke a major rule, like climbing on the tables like some of the younger visitors were doing, being too rowdy, or getting to uncontrollable levels of noise, but they were being far more forgiving and lenient than they normally were. 

Really though, as Luz made her way through the building, past the bookshelves, and up the stairs to her destination, it didn’t take all that long to figure out why the building was so packed, and why the librarians were being so much more lenient with the rules today. 

A variety of people were there today - Workers, who needed a break. Students, who needed to feel like students again. People who had been victimised by the Cherubim, and needed to be around other people who understood. Kids, who needed to be looked after while their parents helped with the reconstruction efforts. And even just people who wanted to be somewhere that felt… At least slightly normal. While the city outside was still returning to normalcy, the library served an important function - It kept people grounded in a feeling of regularity. Of normal life. 

Something that people evidentially needed. 

The degree to which Valeween affected people's lives was… Incalculable. It affected people in so many different ways. So many different relationships were fundamentally changed, and it was impossible to put a number on just how many ways those changed relationships could affect a person. Some people would have had an even worse series of events happen to them than Luz had had. And that was a scary thought. 

They just needed something to feel… Normal again. So for now, things were structured like this. And they would remain this way for a short while, until Bonesborough was back up and running the way that it normally was.

Honestly, she was just thankful that Valeween was an irregular event. She couldn’t imagine going through this  _ every single year.  _

That people were still working together to help everyone get through this mess, and that they were still bending rules after Valeween, and embracing that sense of community - Luz couldn’t help but smile at that. 

If she ever did go back to Earth, that was something she wanted to take with her. Earth could learn a lot from the Isles. 

Arriving at her destination, and after making sure that no one else was around to see her, or was in any of the neighbouring sections that they might hear the mechanisms at work, Luz walked down the aisle and stood in front of the bookcase that led to her friend's secret room. She couldn’t help but notice the titles of the various books, and looked up at the section banner above the bookcase, though she already knew what it said. 

_ Romance _ .

Luz couldn’t help but feel her cheeks redden.  _ Fate had a sense of irony, if nothing else.  _

She reached for the book that acted as a secret lever, and took a step back as the wall opened up, and granted her access. Quickly, she entered, and closed the entrance behind her, so no one would know the room was there - This room was still private to Amity, and Luz didn’t want others knowing about it if she could help it. 

“Amity?” She asked, wanting to see if the Witch was here before she stepped into the room proper. “Amity, you in here?” 

Silence came back, so Luz took a few steps into the room. 

And it was empty. Luz sighed. She had had a feeling that this would have ended up being the case, but… Well, she had hoped that she would be wrong. 

The room felt… Weird without Amity there. It wasn’t the first time that Luz had been back to Amity’s secret room since she first learned it existed - Amity had actually allowed Luz into the room several times in the past. While in there, the pair of them would do homework, read together, or just talk. It made Luz feel proud, knowing that she was one of the only people that Amity was okay with being in this room… Though now, she knew the reason why Amity had let her in. 

_ It didn’t feel the same without her here.  _

Briefly, Luz checked her Scroll again, and couldn’t help but let out another sigh as she saw that she had no new notifications from Amity. 

But she could see that Amity had seen the message. 

Somehow, that was worse than the idea that she hadn’t even seen the message at all. Like she was aware that Luz was looking for her, but just wanted to ignore her, and hope that she would go away, and not try to get in contact with her again. 

Granted, really, it was only a matter of time until they ran into one another again. In the worst case scenario, Luz would just have to wait until Hexside reopened, and unless Amity planned to literally move schools, or just skip classes entirely, she wouldn’t be able to put this off forever. But that… That wasn’t how Luz wanted to do this. If she had to, she would, but… 

...That didn’t mean she liked the idea of Amity being so afraid of her that she’d put off even seeing her until the last possible second. She didn’t want Amity to be afraid of her. She wanted to…

_...She just wanted to figure things out between the two of them. Know where they stood. And what the hell she felt towards Amity.  _

_ Because she was becoming both increasingly unsure, and certain at the same time. _

“...Where the heck are you, Amity?” She whispered to herself, feeling a tug at her chest. 

As she looked up from her Scroll, the table at the back of the room caught her eye. She paused for a moment when she saw the items on there, and slowly approached them. There was a box behind three items, and the box, Luz didn’t recognize, but the items, she did. 

Amity had been here at some point. Recently. These… Had to be things from her house. None of these had been here before.

Of what was here, the diary was the least noteworthy. Thanks to the ‘Library Incident’ involving Edric and Emira, Amity had moved the diary to her home to hide it somewhere there. Luz already had a fairly decent idea of what was in there, and she wasn’t planning on going through it again. Its presence here was noticeable, but aside from that, Luz all but disregarded it. 

What stood out to her first were the stack of photos - A large collection of them. Picking up a few, she flipped through them, and recognised where a large chunk of them had come from - A school trip to the Skull, a fairground, the Serpen-Hawk Incident, and other times where their group had been together. Some had her in them, and some had their friends in them. 

Given the context of… Everything going on right now, Luz couldn’t help but keep track of the number of these photos that had her in them, and interestingly enough, she wasn’t in a disproportionate number of them. She appeared just as much as everyone else. Which said something about how Amity had come to see the rest of their friends. 

When she got to the final few pictures though, her heart stopped. It was Grom. Copies of what had gone into the yearbook, Luz noticed. It would have made sense to have some of them, even if Amity’s feelings towards Luz weren’t romantic, but the fact that they were...

...And that redirected her attention to the tiara. Amity had kept it, while Luz didn’t even know where hers was anymore. The significance of that night, now that she looked back on it… 

...Had… 

_...Had it been her that Amity had wanted to ask to Grom? _

Luz had never seen these things before - Because she had very rarely ever been to Amity’s house, and never in her room, because of some sort of restriction her parents put in place. The few times she had been there, she had been there just to meet up with Amity, or if they were permitted, to train in the courtyard. She had no idea that Amity kept these things. And now that she knew how Amity felt… 

How important this had been to her… 

How much sentiment she clearly had for Grom…

How much she valued her friendships with everyone...

How out of all the things in that great big house of hers… These were the only things she had moved here? 

...How long had Luz been oblivious to this?... 

...

_ No. _

She couldn’t attribute this to just being oblivious. Sometimes, she missed fairly obvious things, or social cues, and sometimes she got in over her head, and misinterpreted people's feelings or intentions, and sometimes even just disregarded them. She was aware of that, and there were times where that lack of knowledge and awareness hurt those around her, and she tried her hardest to learn from it and be better, though she still struggled with it, even after living here for months now. She wasn’t perfect, but she tried.

All that said though - She wasn’t  _ that _ oblivious.

...Eda was right. Willow was right. Boscha was right. 

Amity hadn’t hidden this well. Not especially. Realistically, anyone who observed her for long enough would figure it out. And now all the pieces were in front of her, Luz couldn’t deny that. Memories came back of all the looks, all the time they spent together, all the hints that had just passed her by at the time… She wasn’t ignorant to Amity’s feelings. And maybe she never had been.

She had  _ blocked them out.  _ Because that was easier. 

Because she was afraid. 

Because what that meant was scary to her. 

Because… 

_...Because people didn’t like Luz Noceda like this.  _

Because that wasn’t how it worked. That was never how it worked. Not back on Earth, and not here. So it was easier to attribute it to something else, because that… 

Because that made sense. 

Because there was nothing about her that someone  _ would _ like.

Because there was nothing about her that someone  _ should  _ like. 

Because there was nothing about her that anyone  _ could _ like. 

Because that didn’t run the risk of hurting like all manner of hell. 

Because it was easier than putting herself through that again. 

...And now Amity was the one paying the price for it. 

Because Luz had been a coward this entire time.

A tear fell from Luz’s eye, and rolled down her cheek, and hit the photo in her hand. Said hand began to shake, and after dropping the photo, clung onto the table for support. For a reason Luz couldn’t begin to comprehend, she tried to hold it all in. Maybe just out of habit at this point, from all the times she had felt like this back on Earth. 

_ What the hell kind of a friend was she? _

What sort of a friend did this to people they cared about? 

What sort of a friend pushed this all onto other people? 

What sort of a friend -  _ What sort of a person blocked out how their other friends felt, and pushed them to this point? _

All the times she had gotten that little bit closer to Amity, all the times she would engage in any sort of physical affection, all the times she would tease Amity, even jokingly - 

_ She -  _

_ She didn’t know.  _

_ She didn’t know. _

_ She didn’t know!  _

_ She -  _

_ She hadn’t meant to...  _

_ She -  _

A buzz from her Scroll suddenly cut into her thoughts, and almost immediately, Luz’s hands ripped it out of her pocket like it was an automatic response. She opened the Scroll up. 

_ ‘Meet me at our tree.’  _

Amity. She had replied. 

For a moment, Luz just stared at the message. Her breathing felt off for a moment. Then she bit her lip. 

Closed her Scroll. 

Dried her eyes. 

And slapped her cheeks. 

She still didn’t know exactly how she felt about Amity. 

But she was going to figure it out right now. 

Because Amity deserved an answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To those of you who write - You ever had a chapter that didn’t feel right, and then you get to the end, and then something clicks in your head, and then the whole chapter feels just right? That's how this chapter felt to me. I know this was short, but to be honest I kind of like that for this chapter. It feels.. Fitting somehow. 
> 
> You’ve all got another cliffhanger - But next time, we’re finally going to see thes two talk. Because god knows they need it. So hang tight everyone. Next chapter, we’re diving deep. Might be a while cause I’ve been writing for it and… Ho boy this one is gonna be a toughie, but let see if we can’t get through it!
> 
> Here’s hoping that you all enjoyed - And that next chapter will be what you were all hoping for : D


	14. By Our Tree

The calm beauty that surrounded Amity was in stark contrast to how she felt inside. 

Behind and above her, the Grom tree, that had been the result of both Amity and Luz’s Magic combining as one to defeat Grometheus, stood as strong and as tall as the day that it first came into being. Pink leaves that, when so much of the wildlife on the Isles had turned charcoal black and grey, remained bright and colourful, immune to the effects of the Cherubim’s peering due to its magical properties. 

Around it, the auburn and oranges of the trees and flora accessorised the Grom tree, making it stand out that little bit more in a wonderful bright contrast, and the sight over the Boiling Seas was as wonderful as it ever had been here, the way the water reflected the light and seemed to make it all sparkle… 

All of it radiated calm. Contentment. A certain peace with things just… Happening as they happened, like it was in the very nature of the season of Auburntide. None of this was here by conscious choice, aside from the Grom Tree. Nature had fallen where it had fallen. The result of just letting things play out, and seeing what happened. 

Nature could just allow itself to see what happened naturally, without the fear of what would happen, needing to take external influences into account, or be fearful about the seventeen different ways that it could go wrong somehow. The tree didn’t need to worry about what the ground would think or feel towards it once its leaf hit the grass. It just would, and whatever happened, happened. 

It had been this combination of observations that made Amity come here. 

That and the sentimental value that the tree had to her. And it had plenty of sentimental value to her. 

This wasn’t the first time that Amity had come here when she needed time to think, or time to herself, ever since the tree had sprung to life. There were times when she needed a place to herself to study, away from anyone else, including her friends and her siblings. And sometimes, it would bring her a feeling of comfort. More often than not though, it was times when she needed to think, without the risk of interruption. 

These reasons had helped it to become something of a favourite spot of hers. Where the tree had come from, when it had been born, and just how it had been brought into the world... There were a lot of feelings associated with this place, and a part of her had hoped that it would help her to feel… Some sense of courage, or some sense of peace. 

Both of which were, if she were being honest, failing her right now that things were actually in motion.

As soon as Amity sent her message to Luz, a part of her regretted sending it. 

_Deeply_ regretted it. 

Anxiety spiked up in her chest, and she bit her lower lip, harder than was healthy. Her hands fell to her sides, and she took a few deep breaths, trying to make herself relax, at least a little. Her hands grabbed patches of grass, pulling a few up from the ground as she did so. Having something to grab hold of like that helped her to feel like she wasn’t falling off a cliff - It was a hard feeling to explain, but it helped her as her mind began to go into overdrive, thinking of the dozens of ways this could end up going. 

_She was terrified of what Luz was going to say._

And she wasn’t even going to pretend that that wasn’t the case. She _was_ terrified of what Luz would say when she inevitably got here. 

_Titan - damned terrified._

And that fear made her want to run - It really, really did make her want to run. Because if she didn’t hear it, that small little part of her heart that was still holding onto hope that maybe Luz might be willing to give her a chance could keep on holding on, because right now, it felt like that was the only thing that was helping her wake up in the morning. And perhaps that too wasn’t healthy, but Amity couldn’t help it. 

She cared about Luz so much. She wanted Luz to care about her the same way. It was selfish, but she couldn’t help it. 

But in spite of the immense anxiety that was now creeping into her body though, she wouldn’t run. She wasn’t going to. Not this time. 

It was, in fact, exactly that feeling that had made her reply to Luz. Even when it would have been so much easier to ignore it, and to pretend that she hadn’t seen it. Even when _literally anything else_ would have been easier, it was that fear that made her agree to see her crush. To face this. 

_Because she couldn’t keep feeling like this._

Over the last few days since Valeween had ended, Amity had found herself crippled with how… Overwhelmed she was. 

There wasn’t a better word for it. This feeling, it had practically taken over every moment of day, leaving her unable to focus on anything else. She tried to focus on something else - Anything else - to try to take her mind off of it, but it was impossible. Her mind always went back to it. 

Always focused on it. 

When she had first realised how she felt about Luz, a similar thing had happened - Thoughts of her filling Amity’s head at every waking moment, and making her a blushing, awkward, stammering mess that would jump at even the smallest interactions with her. The way that Luz made her feel, the effect that she had on her whenever she acted in that… That _‘Luz’_ way that she did, it made it difficult to focus on anything else. But she had managed to figure out ways to handle that, so she could act like an actually functioning Witch around her crush. She’d never felt like that before. Anything even similar hadn’t even come close. 

But this was different. For so many reasons. 

For one thing, the original way she felt about Luz actually _made her happy._

_This just made her feel miserable._

Amity inhaled and exhaled again, and then made herself open her eyes. She had… Managed to at least steady her heart rate a bit. She tried to watch over the Boiling Sea, focusing on the waves off in the distance and watching how they shifted and broke apart. She didn’t have anything else she could focus on. It helped to ground her… Just a little bit. Kept her at least a bit distracted. It helped. 

So many different moving parts were going on in her head right now that led to this crushing, suffocating feeling of overwhelming anxiety - It wasn’t just one thing. 

It wasn’t just the fear. She was afraid of rejection, of what Luz would say to her when she got here. That hadn’t changed. And that was still immense. But that only played a small part in the now far wider picture.

_The biggest players were guilt, and were shame._

Shame that she had gotten hit by a Cherubim in the first place. 

Guilt that more than anything else, she wanted Luz to stay here. To stay on the Isles, even though she knew that Luz wanted to return to the Human world. 

Guilt that she hadn’t changed. 

Shame that she was the same, selfish, self centered person that she had been the day that she met Luz. 

Guilt that she couldn’t change. 

Not even for Luz. 

_She couldn’t even change for Luz._

Amity knew she didn’t have the right to feel sorry for herself - And it was just as selfish that she did feel like this at all. She didn’t have the right. She didn’t even have the right to even want to not feel like this anymore - But she - She couldn’t take it anymore. 

Regret, remorse, anxiety, fear - It all piled up in her mind and in her chest. And it just grew more and more the more uncertain she was. She - She needed to know. Needed to know where they stood. Needed to know if Luz even saw her as a friend. Needed an answer. 

_Even if it was a no._

So when Luz messaged her… It took her a few minutes to work up the courage to reply, but she did. She hadn’t known how to approach Luz herself - Was too afraid to. 

But… Luz asked her to talk. Somehow that made it easier. 

The Witch leaned back and allowed her head to hit the trunk of the tree. She wasn’t even making sense to herself. All these thoughts, feelings, fears, they all jumbled up into an unstructured mess that she couldn’t figure out how to express coherently, or even just think about clearly. There was just too much going on in her head and in her heart. So many feelings that had spent so long without being addressed, until they swelled into… Well, this.

All she knew was that the part of her that wanted to know was winning over the part of her that wanted to run and hide. At least then she would know. At least then she could… 

…Do whatever was supposed to come next.

* * *

It was hard not to remember Grom as Luz approached the cliff. 

The tree was enormous - Far larger than the other ones around it. It was visible from a fair distance away - Peering above the other trees near it, Luz had first spotted the thing about ten minutes ago, and she still hadn’t reached its base yet. Though, that might have had more to do with how it looked as opposed to its height. 

Colourful bright pink leaves stood out easily over the orange and reds that coloured the islands, and a part of Luz suddenly felt regretful that she hadn’t had the foresight to go and see it over the last week - Magical plant life wasn’t affected by the effects the Cherubim had on the Isle’s ecosystem, nor was plant life that had been generated by Magic. It was the same reason why Willow’s Plant Magic hadn’t just become another vessel for the Cherubim to spy on the Witches of the Isles. Their tree would have stood out brilliantly against the greys and blacks that had taken over all the other plants. 

Valeween had kept her busy though. And immensely distracted. The thought had just never crossed her mind until now. 

Thanks to Valeween though, everything about it felt like it was put into a new context. The path to the tree. The tree itself. Grom. Even how Amity referred to it as ‘Our Tree’ felt different now. Thinking back on it, it had just become a thing that the two of them did over the months, whenever the tree came up in conversation. It had changed from being ‘The Grom Tree’ to ‘Our Tree’ over time, without either of them even noticing. 

Or, at least, Luz not noticing. Or blocking it out. She didn’t know which it was at this point. 

Now, she wondered if Amity had noticed. And what she had made of that at the time. 

What she made of it now. 

Knowing what she knew now, it made Luz’s face feel slightly warm. 

Grom itself though, aside from the existential horror that it had thrown her way, had been nothing short of an absolutely incredible night. That night was still one Luz held dear to herself, and would admit, it made beyond her happy that Amity did too. It felt like it was the night their friendship was truly sealed beyond any measure of a doubt. In spite of their vastly improved relationship up until that point, there had still been at least a _mild, hair-width degree_ of ambiguity beforehand, at least in Luz’s mind, but by the end of it, that had been completely gone. 

And they had danced. And they had laughed. And they had spent the entire celebration together and it had been an amazing time - A time that, back on Earth, she had a feeling she would have never gotten to experience. 

No one would have ever gone to prom with the person who was prepared, and indeed tried to go once, in an otter onesie. 

But people here were. 

Just another reason on a long list of reasons why she loved the Isles as much as she did. 

Luz’s hands were sunk deep into the pockets of her jacket - For some reason, she couldn’t help but remember _very specifically_ in her head that this jacket had a different design to the one she normally wore, since her favourite one had been torn up during Valeween from treating Amity’s injuries. This one had long sleeves, was just a solid blue, but had vine-like patterns going up the sleeves before it terminated at the hood. It was weird to take note of that, especially since she’d barely even registered it throughout the day, but Luz couldn’t help but notice it now. It was different. Weird. 

Just walking towards the tree felt… Weird. Not necessarily a bad weird, just… Weird. It was difficult to describe. 

An anxious weird. That was the best she could do. 

Now that she knew Amity was… In love with her, - And that was still an _insane thought to get her head around_ \- Luz found herself looking back on her memories as she approached the tree. The new context applied, she found herself double checking and questioning nearly every interaction the two of them had had. Every conversation, every smile, every time her face went red but Luz had attributed it to some other factor, like sickness or heat. Seeing if she could spot signs of how Amity’s feelings had evolved, and when, and maybe why. 

That really was the biggest question involved. One that Luz still couldn’t even begin to get her head around. 

_Why?_

_And how._

Maybe _how_ was the better question, actually. 

Of all the people out there… 

“How and why… _Me?”_ She said quietly, not even realising that she had said it herself. 

Twists, turns, and paths had been walked down while all these thoughts had gone on throughout her head, and she hadn’t been paying full attention to her surroundings. She had gone along mostly automatically, the thoughts she was having retaining her focus. She had walked these paths a thousand times. She knew where she was going mostly by instinct. 

It wasn’t until she was on the final path that she realised exactly where she was. She gulped, but continued to walk. 

Getting close and closer to the base of the tree though, Luz felt her heartbeat pick up. She was nervous, of course, though the rational part of her brain told her that it didn’t make sense. She knew how Amity felt. It wasn’t like there was even a risk to her, really. She didn’t need to be afraid how Amity felt about her in this whole scenario. For some reason, she almost felt like she needed to be. But she didn’t. 

So why was she so nervous? 

It was… 

...It felt familiar. 

_It felt like Earth._

A memory flashed throughout her mind. Of Earth. Of her school. Of the last time something like this happened. 

...Honestly, Luz didn’t even know what was going to happen here, but she knew that it was going to change… Pretty much everything, no matter how this all went. 

What she didn’t know was if this would be a positive change, or a negative change. 

_That was scary._

Finally, she stood next to the tree, and for a moment, she just placed her hand on it, like she needed to confirm that it was still there. It still was. This tree mattered to her. She was proud of it. Where it had come from, times she had come here with Amity… It all mattered to her. It was her tree. 

_Their_ tree. 

Somehow, it felt fitting that they would end up here after all of this. 

Amity would be on the other side of the tree relative to where Luz was, she knew. Her heart jumped. She took a deep breath, and let out a long, quiet exhale. Then she stepped around the tree. 

And there she was. 

There wasn’t even a split second where they needed to readjust their eyes to look directly at one another - The moment Luz turned the corner, she was already looking down at Amity, sat and huddled against the tree as she was. Likewise, Amity was already looking up at Luz. Maybe she had heard her approach, and that was how she had known she was about to arrive. 

Immediately, Luz couldn’t help but notice that Amity’s eyes looked… Redder than she remembered them being. It didn’t take much to know where that had come from - And knowing that Amity had spent the last couple of days crying about all of this made Luz’s heart sink. 

Likewise, Amity could see the dark circles that had formed under Luz’s eyes, and had to wonder just how much of her clear lack of sleep had come from her confession. Just one more thing to feel guilty over. 

For a moment, the two of them just stared at one another. Not sure what to say, both their chests tightening, both trying to find the right words. 

“...Hey.” Luz finally said, breaking the silence first. She spoke slower than usual. More uncertainly. 

“...Hey.” Amity said back. She was noticeably quieter. 

“...A… Are you…” Luz stopped halfway through her sentence. _‘Are you okay?’_ Obviously Amity wasn’t. But what else was she supposed to say?

For a brief pause, Amity didn’t say anything, or move at all. She just looked at Luz, before a small sigh escaped her, and she looked forward, out over the Boiling Sea. “...No. Not really.”

Her hair was down, so it was hard to see her eyes behind it to gauge her visual response. Luz wondered if she had tied it up again since the last time they saw one another - Probably not. Where would she even get a hair tie from, when hers was lost when they were trapped under the rubble at Blight Manor, and when Blight Manor was basically a pile of charred rubble right now? Amity looked so different with it down. It was… Almost distracting. 

Luz shifted awkwardly on her feet, and then gestured to a space next to Amity. “Er… You mind if I…?” 

Amity just shook her head, and moved a few inches to the side to allow Luz to sit down. That was a no, she didn’t mind, then. 

Taking a seat next to Amity, the two of them stayed silent for a little bit more. They both looked out at the Boiling Sea, trying to figure out what they were going to say to one another. There had been little moments during the walk here that Luz had played in her mind, had almost played out in her mind of how this was going to end up going, and she was quickly realising that not a single one of them was going to play out as she had imagined. That would rely on her knowing what to say. 

That would rely on them even being able to talk at all. 

Where did they start? Where _could_ they start with something like this? 

...Maybe it made sense to start as early as Luz could think to start from. 

“...I er… Do you… Do you mind if I ask you a question, Amity?” She asked, turning her head slightly and looking towards her friend. 

The Witch nodded. Luz couldn’t tell if she was looking at her, or still out to sea. 

“I uh… I went to your room in the library.” She saw Amity tense up at that, and quickly went to explain herself. “I didn’t mean to intrude or anything, I thought you might have been there. And I er… Saw what you had there.” 

A pause. 

“...Was… Was I the person that you wanted to ask to Grom?” 

Another pause. A longer pause. 

“...Yes.” Amity’s answer was quiet, and she almost sounded like she was ashamed of it.

An exhale left Luz’s chest, as she leaned back against the tree. So she had been right. She was the Grom crush. She was the crush Amity had had for… Months now. 

A part of her had gotten the idea in her head that maybe Amity’s feelings towards her were a more recent development, and that there had been someone else before her that had caught Amity’s eye, and that maybe it all of this hadn’t been a result of her blocking out how Amity felt for as long as she had been doing. 

It wasn’t the case though. She had been the one Amity had wanted to ask out for close to six entire months now. 

Every time she had tried to make Amity feel better about… That entire situation, all came returning flooding back into her head. Every time she tried to encourage Amity to just go for it, every time she would gently tease her about it, every time she tried to offer what little advice she thought she could give. Every time the two of them were close and she would… Just throw something out there. For some reason her whole ‘Would you smooch an Abomination’ joke from earlier in the week came to mind.

Hell, Grom came back into her mind.

They had been genuine efforts to help, or to be a good friend, or just to have fun with Amity, but now she couldn’t help but feel like she had only been contributing to the mess Amity was now in. 

She didn’t...

“...I didn’t know.” She said, quietly. She didn’t know what else to say. 

A part of her was happy though - She never had imagined back on Earth that someone would ever want to ask her to anything like Grom. The fact that Amity had wanted to… It made her happy, in a way she couldn’t express right now. 

“...I didn’t tell you.” Amity said. Her arms rested on top of her knees, and her forehead rested against them. Her entire face was hidden now. “It’s not like it's your fault for not knowing.” 

“Still… I’m… Sorry, if I made things harder for you, after that…” 

“You don’t need to be. It’s okay.”

Another pause. 

“Luz, I -“ 

“Amity -“

Both of them had turned to look at the other, but when they froze again when they met one another’s eyes and interrupted one another. For a second, they just looked at one another, waiting for the other to continue talking, but neither did. 

There really wasn’t going to be a comfortable way of doing this, Luz was rapidly realising. This was going to be an awkward, uncertain, mess of a conversation. They were going to trip up, interrupt one another, and have periods where they didn’t know what to even begin to say to one another. 

Again, this time, she was the one who broke the silence. “Um… Do you wanna go first, or should I?” 

“...I’m sorry.” 

Amity rested her forehead on her arms again, hiding her face. Her arms were crossed and her hands gripped onto the other arms skin. Luz could see her fingers becoming more and more tense and rigid, and her nails digging into her skin.

“...I didn’t want you to find out like that.” Amity’s voice was quiet and muffled. “I… I wanted to be able to tell you how I felt when I could… I wanted it to be…” She trailed off. “...I - I don’t know... I just… I wanted to be able to tell you myself, not while some Cherubim made me say things I couldn’t control.” 

Her head came up, slightly. 

“I wanted to tell you, I - I really did, Luz. I’ve wanted to for… Months, now. I didn’t want to hide it from you, but I… I didn’t know what you would say if you knew. I was…” Her sentence trailed off, until she turned completely silent.

“...Afraid I would reject you.” Luz finished. This was the place that she had learned rejection was Amity’s biggest fear. She still remembered. And now that she knew it was her that Amity had wanted to ask to Grom…

 _What a mess this all was._

“I’m sorry…” Amity repeated, her head sinking back down low. “I - I was afraid that you’d hate me, or that it’d make things too weird between us and we wouldn’t be able to even be friends anymore and I can’t - I don’t think I can handle that and that's just as selfish and I’m sorry but I can’t - “ She stopped herself. 

_I don’t think I could handle it if you rejected me._

She was panicking, talking too fast. She made herself take a few short breaths. She… She couldn’t say that. She couldn’t burden Luz with that now. It wasn’t Luz’s responsibility to bear that burden. She didn’t want to make Luz feel like she had to do… Anything out of some sense of guilt. She didn’t want that. She didn’t want Luz to do or say anything she didn’t mean here. If it was said out of guilt it wouldn’t mean anything, and it wouldn’t be fair to her either. She -

A warm hand gently was placed onto her shoulder, and gave it a gentle, reassuring squeeze. Amity looked up, and met Luz’s _Titan-forsaken beautiful eyes_ looking at her with a kindness the Witch only ever saw from her. She didn’t show any anger, or any anxiety, or… Anything. If she did feel any, she wasn’t showing it, but… Somehow, Amity knew she didn’t. At least, not in regards to this right now. Not about what she was talking about.

Her feelings towards Luz didn’t make the Human uncomfortable. Not on their own. 

There was a look on her face that wasn’t quite a smile, but wasn’t a frown either. 

She spoke just as gently, and encouragingly. “...Go on.” 

“...You’re one of the… The only people that I feel like I can just… Be myself around. I treated you awfully before, but you still gave me a chance and tried to reach out to me. You know the kind of person I used to be, and you didn’t just abandon me. And you… You’ve been one of the closest friends that I’ve ever… Ever had. I can be open with you. I can be honest with you. And you’ve… Always just been there, and I…” 

A slight pause. 

“...You know more about me than my parents even do, and I…” 

Then Amity couldn’t handle it anymore, and looked away. 

“...And I was afraid of the one person who knows me that well… Rejecting the way I feel about them… About you, Luz.” 

“Amity…” 

“And that’s still so damn selfish of me! Even wanting to tell you on my terms was because I was being selfish! Because I didn’t… I - I didn’t want you to know that I… Don’t want you to go back to Earth…” 

She sniffled. 

“...I didn’t want you to know that that's the kind of person I am…”

And then she held back a sob that was pushing its way up her throat. 

“..That’s why my eyes didn’t glow when I told you I was in love with you… Because I was still trying to… Hide that from you...”

So, that explained it, Luz noted quickly to herself. One of her previous guesses had been right - Amity’s eyes hadn’t gone blue before because the day before Valeween, she had been meaning to tell her about how she felt. That had been right. That explained that. 

Although that did raise another question, though it wasn’t relevant right now. So she asked one that was. 

“...Why do you think I want to go back to Earth?” 

Amity glanced back at Luz, and tried to see again if there was some look of anger or irritation in her expression. Her words were ambiguous enough that she could have been asking while angry, but it didn’t seem to be the case. There was none in her voice, and when she looked, there was none on her face. It sounded more like curiosity. Honest curiosity. 

“...It's your home. You grew up there. It’s… You’ve talked about the sorts of places you used to hang out, and… And it’s… It’s normal that you’d miss it.” 

“I don’t.” 

Blinking, Amity could have sworn her heart missed a beat. “Y - You don’t?” 

“Well… Not how you think I do.” Luz clarified. She leaned back against the tree and let out a small sigh. “I mean, sure, I miss being able to play video games and being able to use the internet, but it’s not like I can’t survive without those. I… I’ve told you how people treated me back on Earth. I wasn’t exactly popular there.” She forced a small laugh, and tried to joke about how things were on Earth. “You make _one_ model of an anatomically correct griffon and you’re the weird person who no one wants to be around or even likes. You…” 

She paused for a second to consider a decent analogy. 

“....You remember how Boscha used to treat me, Willow and Gus? Imagine that, but it’s everyone at Hexside. Constantly.” 

That was… Alarmingly difficult for Amity to even imagine. The fact it was difficult actually made Amity shiver at the sort of life Luz had led up until she arrived on the Boiling Isles. 

“It’s not like I miss that.” She said, almost matter of factly, and remarkably unphased by what she was describing. She actually managed to smile softly, and look around again. “Plus… Amity, this place is… It’s everything I’ve ever wanted. I can do Magic here! I can have adventures here! I… I have friends here…” She looked at Amity. “...People like you are here…” 

Her smile grew that little bit more. 

“Even if I find a way home - I’m not leaving. I’d be right back here the moment I got the chance.” 

“... Y... You would?” 

“This place is more of a home to me than Earth is.” Luz told her. “I like it here more than I like Earth... I’m no one back on Earth. Here I…” 

The smile faded. 

“...People like me enough to want to hang out with me. I have… Actual friends here.I… I feel like I exist here. Like I actually matter here.” 

“Then… Why do you want to go back?” 

“...I just want my Mami to know I’m okay.” 

Amity couldn’t help but blink at that. That… 

_That was it? That was all she cared about going back to Earth for?_

“I should have been home months ago.” Luz explained. “I… She thought I was at a summer camp when I first arrived here, and I should have been home three months ago… For all she knows I’m…” She didn’t finish the thought out loud. “...You think you’re selfish? Amity, I lied to my mother about where I was and never told her just because I wanted to stay here instead of going to summer camp. You remember what happened at Grom, right? That was my biggest fear - Her finding out that I lied to her and was here this whole time.” 

A sigh escaped her. 

“...It’s not selfish to want things, Amity. It’s selfish to hurt people because of what you want. And that's what I did. If either of us is selfish, it’s me.” 

“...You say that. But I hurt you because I didn’t have the courage to admit how I felt about you. I took it out on you. Yelled at you. Made you think it was your fault that I acted the way I did…”

“...It kind of was though, wasn’t it? I never told you _why_ I wanted to go back to Earth. If I had, then maybe we could have avoided… _All_ of this.” 

“You didn’t owe me that.” 

“And then I yelled at you for not telling me why you were upset, when you didn’t owe me anything either.”

“After I yelled at you. After _what_ I yelled at you, _how_ I yelled at you. I… I thought you hated me after that…” 

“...I thought _you_ hated _me_ after that…” 

Both of them fell silent for a short while, and they both let out a heavy exhale. Both their heads hung, and for the two of them, it was hard not to feel a weird mixture of shame and relief at the revelations that had been made so far. Both of them felt lighter for it all. 

To be able to express this. To be able to talk about it...

So much of this had come down to misunderstanding and miscommunication, fear and uncertainty, and them both having different things going on in their lives. Different thoughts, different issues. None of this had been down to them having an issue with the other. Neither of them had any issue whatsoever with the other. 

Neither of them was at fault for what had happened. 

It was all just… A miscommunication. A mistake. 

Luz managed to smile. 

Just a little bit. Just slightly. 

“...So, I guess we’re both kinda selfish, huh?” 

Somehow, that made Amity chuckle. And that in and of itself was incredible - After the hell that her life had been these past few days - Of course. Of course it would be Luz to manage to make her actually chuckle again. 

_Of course!_

“I… I guess so.” She nodded, able to smile back at Luz. 

In response to that, Luz couldn’t help but laugh gently herself. Which in turn made Amity laugh just that little bit more, which quickly became a reciprocal action, until both of them found themselves just openly and loudly laughing at the entire series of events that had wound them up here. 

Miscommunication after miscommunication, assumptions, and their own inability to just relax and calm down. There were a dozen moments that they could have put a stop to all of this if they had just had the foresight to calm down and explain themselves to the other!

Somehow, it all felt so stupid now!

A few minutes later though, both of them had managed to wear themselves out from their chuckling, and then just sat together in a momentarily comfortable silence. 

Eventually though, it had to come to an end. 

They were nowhere near done with this conversation. 

“...I don’t hate you, you know.” Luz finally said, breaking that silence once again. She spoke gently, and with warmth. A smile was there too. “After everything we’ve gone through together… I’m never not going to think of you as a friend, Amity. You’re… Probably the closest I’ve ever been to a person.” 

It made Amity smile too, just that little bit more. A part of the fear of her rejection came from the idea of losing Luz, that if she acted on these damned stupid feelings of her, she would ruin what they did have. Losing her friendship with the one person who she felt accepted and understood her. But the fact that Luz didn’t even see that as a possibility… That made it easier. 

Though it did still hurt a bit. The idea of it never being more than that. It would be a lie to pretend that the idea of that not happening didn’t hurt. But she couldn’t make Luz feel anything for her. And even if she could somehow rewrite the universe so that she did, she wouldn’t. She held to that principle before, and she was going to hold to it now. 

She dared to ask though. “...What about… How I feel about you?” 

That made Luz pause. The Human looked towards the ground, and her eyebrows furrowed inwards. For a moment, Amity regretted finding the nerve to ask. 

“...I… I’m sorry, Amity…” 

Amity gulped. 

“...But I don’t know how I feel about you… Like that.” 

Then Amity blinked. That was… “W… What do you mean?” 

Luz tried to find the right words, but there really weren’t any to properly describe how she felt right now. How she felt towards Amity... It was… 

...An odd combobulation of feelings that she couldn’t properly put together. 

But she made the effort. 

“You’re this… Incredible person, Amity. You’ve changed so much since I met you. I know you don’t think that way about yourself, but… I do. You have changed. And I’m… So proud that you’re my friend.” 

The Witch's heart couldn’t help but flutter at that. 

“You’re so good to people. You’re… You’re there when I need you. You’re always helping me when you don’t need to - Heck, before this all started, you were gonna help me with Abominations some more, even when you still have your own work you needed to do. You were willing to put yourself on the line during Valeween before I… Made you unable to. Even though you were scared. And you were willing to help me at the Ved’ma Temple, even though you didn’t want me to go back to Earth… And…” 

Another smile came to Luz’s lips, though her eyes narrowed. 

“...Do you want to know something I noticed about what you said when you were infected by the Cherubim?” 

“...What?” 

“The only time your eyes went blue was when you told me you didn’t want me to go back to Earth. Not that you wanted me to like you back.” 

Blue eyes only occurred when the affects of the Cherubim were forcing someone to say something they kept hidden deep down. Her confession of love was something she had been planning on saying, which was why her eyes hadn’t gone blue. But hiding that she just wanted Luz to be around - And that was it?

How could she call herself selfish when that was her biggest fear? 

“You would have been okay with me just…. Being a part of your life.” The smallest blush appeared on Luz’s cheeks. “And that just… I don’t know if it’s weird, but that just… It made me happy.” 

A blush also appeared on Amity’s cheeks. 

“It makes me happy that you just… You just want me to be around. I’m not… I’m not…”

Her voice got progressively quieter and quieter. Amity didn’t interrupt, but when Luz started to stop talking, she spoke up. “...Luz?” 

“...” She muttered something, but Amity couldn’t hear it.

“What?” 

“...I don’t understand how you could like me.” Luz forced out. And there was noticeable distance to her voice that Amity didn’t think she’d ever heard before. Like she was a million miles away. Like she was remembering something from an entirely other world. “I don’t… I don’t know what you see in me.” 

“Luz, you’re - “ 

_“It doesn’t happen to me, Amity!”_

The Human suddenly said, far, far louder than she had either needed to or had meant to. Judging from how wide her eyes had gotten after she had yelled it, and from how quickly she covered her mouth and shrunk back into herself. A few seconds of silence passed before she spoke again. 

“...Sorry.” She apologised, quietly. “It’s just - I’m just not used to people… Liking me. I’ve… Well, I wasn’t exactly popular at school back on Earth, you know that. I didn’t have friends there. It’s still weird to me that Willow and Gus even want to be around me, nevermind… What you feel towards me.” 

Luz was normally so bouncy, so full of energy, and so outgoing, that this was… Somehow unsettling to Amity. She’d known that Luz had had problems back on Earth for a while now, but in spite of how much she had shared about the other world she lived within, and how much she had shared with Amity about how she was treated there by so many people, somehow, this felt new.

That Luz somehow didn’t even see herself as even remotely likeable to people? 

It was growing increasingly more and more difficult to not just despise Earth outright for the Witch for what it did to her friend. 

“...I blocked out how you felt about me.” 

“...Huh?” Amity froze. 

“I only just… I guess it only just clicked a little bit earlier today for me, but I…” Luz’s shoulders slumped. “...I’m not used to people liking me, so I just… I’m just used to people not liking me. No matter how much I tried back on Earth, people would just…” 

Turn her away. Laugh at her for trying. Mess with her. Even when she tried to get through it all with a smile, like she was just laughing along with them as though it didn’t hurt. 

“...I didn’t fit in.” She said, simplifying all that. It was too much to get into right now. Especially right now. “I never really made friends… I had…” A pause, and for a moment, she considered not saying anything more… But Amity deserved the full extent of everything that had happened to make her like this. “I had crushes there, once or twice.” 

Though a part of her had expected the uncomfortable shift in Amity’s expression, it didn’t come from a place of jealousy or anything along those lines. It was more like Amity already knew what Luz was going to say next, and that that alarmed her. 

“...And they… They went about the same way as making friends did.” Rejection, ridicule, and more of her trying to pretend that she was fine when she wasn’t. “And people would laugh at me for those too, and I…” 

Her finger and thumb reached up and rubbed against her eyes. These weren’t pleasant memories for Luz to be going into. There were reasons she hadn’t thought about them ever since she had gotten to the Isles, and had tried to never think about them even while she was back on Earth.

“...Some of them made jokes about it.” 

“...What in the world do you mean, ‘Made jokes about it’?” Amity asked, an eyebrow raised. There was a shakiness to her voice that only ever happened when someone was just on the verge of feeling anger. 

Luz sighed, heavily. “...There was this one guy who I liked a lot when I was like, ten I think. He was one of the like, ‘cool nerds’ I guess you’d call it? Like, we liked a ton of the same stuff. We weren’t friends or anything, but we talked a couple of times, and one day, I got the _great idea_ to try to do some…” She cringed at the memory, but she forced the words out anyway, “...Drawings of the two of us.” 

“You… Drew the two of you as like, a couple, or?...” 

“I thought it would be cute!” Luz justified defensively, and from the look on her face, Amity could tell this memory in particular bothered her a lot. 

_A lot._

Getting back to the story, Luz’s hand held her face in it, covering up her eyes. Going through this memory in particular was like remembering something incredibly, incredibly stupid that one did as a child that now that someone was older, were such easily avoidable situations. Which, she supposed this was, in a way. 

Just more emotionally damaging. 

“I wasn’t gonna ever show him them - They were just for me, you know? But… Someone went through my notebook at some point, I… I don’t know when. Or how they even got hold of it, but they showed it to the guy, and he…” 

Her hand fell. 

“...Decided to make a bunch of copies of it and stick them on a bunch of lockers.” 

“ _...What.”_

“It was… Apparently supposed to be a prank. That's what they called it.” 

“What the hell was even wrong with him?! What - Why?! Why even do that?! What _possible reason_ was there to even be that cruel?!” 

Even _if_ she counted the Library Incident, in the literal years they had tormented her, _nothing_ that Emira or Edric had ever done to Amity as a ‘prank’ had ever come close to that absurd level of pointless cruelty for the sake of being cruel - At the _absolute Titan-damned least_ , in their own twisted way, in a logic that only made sense to them, they had been trying to make Amity more disposed to a way that they thought would make her a bit more happy or relaxed! 

_What the hell did this guy have as his reason?_

“Gonna be honest, I kind of feel like I dodged a bullet in hindsight.” Luz shrugged, though she still slumped. She recognised that it was messed up, but… “But… Well, that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt. He rejected me, obviously. Because I was the ‘weird girl’ that no one likes. Because there’s nothing about me that he liked.” 

“That was way overkill!” Amity all but yelled. “Why would anyone do that?!” 

“Weren’t you afraid I was going to do something similar?” 

“You would have at least had a reason to be like that! What reason did he have to just be a - A complete - A - “ There wasn’t a word violent enough to properly express Amity’s frustrations, so she just stammered. Words wouldn’t do what she wanted to convey justice. 

“I have no idea.” Luz shrugged again after a few seconds, and casting her eyes out to the Boiling Sea again. “Like I said, it’s not like I miss that about Earth. I’d be perfectly happy to not… Ever go to school there ever again, but… It’s not like he was wrong.” 

Amity could have sworn she felt her blood run cold. 

“...There’s nothing special about me that someone would like. Or even could like. Not even special, there’s just… I’m just… _Me_. And it… And it’s easier to just… Accept that then pretend that things could be different.” 

She turned back to Amity, finally. 

“So I blocked out all the signs. All the little hints, all the obvious signs, all the… Everything that you did, because it… Because it’s easier than going through that again… Because I don’t know what you see in me.” 

“Luz…” 

“But you said all of that stuff under the Cherubim Ray’s influence and I know you’re not just… I guess tricking me, or lying to me, or… Something like that - But I just - I don’t know how you can see me like that, and I’m not… I…” 

Her head slumped once more. 

“...I don’t know how I feel about it. I don’t know how I feel about you. I’m not… I’m not used to this. I don’t… “ 

More than anything, Luz wanted to be able to give Amity a solid answer. Because she deserved one, and because she had promised herself that she would figure out how she felt today. She wanted to be able to alleviate Amity’s fears once and for all. She wanted to be able to give her some closure, or… Something. 

But she couldn’t. 

Because she didn’t know. 

Because she hadn’t ever been faced with a situation like this. 

Because… She didn’t even think she was capable of being in this situation. It had never crossed her mind. 

Because she wasn’t special. She wanted to be, but she wasn’t. She wasn’t some incredible person. She didn’t have anything anyone could find anywhere else, but better. 

_Because she was Luz Noceda. The person who was too weird, too different, too… Everything, for anyone to really like her like that._

And so she had blocked it all out. Every feeling that Amity had been conveying - Obvious or not - for months now. And in doing that, she hadn't given herself the ability to explore how those feelings made her feel, how they affected her, or figure out how she felt in return. 

And yet somehow, of everyone in the world… Amity somehow saw something… Saw something special in her. 

And from Luz to her...

...Tears began to run down Luz’s face again, upset at how she had failed at what she had set out to do here. Upset that she couldn’t give Amity an answer that she wanted. That she needed. That she had promised herself that she would be able to give Amity today, but couldn’t. 

“...I don’t feel the same way about you that I feel about Gus, or about Willow. This is… This is something else, and I’m sorry, but I don’t know what it is.” 

It was so _… so… So frustrating!...._

_After everything! After all the time that they had spent together! After Valeween! After finally being able to finally bring herself to even talk about this!_

_After all of this!_

_Because there was something there! Luz just didn’t know what!_

“I don’t know how to figure it out, Amity. I want to - I want to be able to figure everything out so we can figure out what to do from here. I want to be able to tell you how I feel about you but I don’t know how to! I don’t know how I feel about you! I don’t _even know how to figure out_ how I feel about you! I don’t - ” 

“Please Luz... Stop.”

And suddenly, Luz found herself wrapped into a hug. 

The single biggest, warmest, more heartfelt hug she had ever experienced in her _entire life._

A hug that took her breath away. That made her freeze on the spot. That made her eyes open up wide and made everything feel still. 

Amity was crying again too - Luz could feel the Witch’s tears running against her cheek and onto her neck. There were little hitches in her breathing that let Luz know that she was holding back sobs. She was holding on tight. 

“Luz, do you…” 

...But there was also a lightness to her voice. 

“...Do you have any idea how worried I was that you were going to say you didn’t want anything to do with me anymore?... After everything that I said and did to you, everything I hid from you…” 

_She was… Happy._

“I…” Luz’s voice was far quieter. Her tears fell silently, as did her arms, limp and dangling by her sides. The strength to do anything else with them just wasn’t there. She just let herself be held. “...I wouldn’t… I _couldn’t_ do that to you Amity… I… I don’t want you to… Not be a part of my life either… Even if…”

Even if right now, she didn’t know what form that would take. 

_But she desperately wanted to know._

More than anything right now. 

Another sob escaped Amity, and that made her shake. “I’m so… I’m... I thought…” At this particular moment, She shook her head, and let go of her Human crush lightly, so she could look at her, though for right now, she avoided direct eye contact.“...Luz, I… I’m… I’m so sorry that you had to go through all the stuff that you did back on Earth. You don’t deserve any of it. No one does, but someone as… As amazing as you… You shouldn’t have had to go through any of it.” 

That just made the tears flow from Luz’s eyes faster and faster. 

She hadn’t ever even been told that much before. 

“Whoever did that to you is just…” Amity deliberately bit her lip - If she went down that particular path, she wasn’t going to be able to stop, and it was going to get her far, far off track. And that wasn’t important right now. “I - I don’t know how you can even think about yourself the way that you do. You… You’re an amazing person Luz. No one on Earth knows what they’re talking about. None of them.” 

“Am - Amity - “ 

“You’re the first Human to ever learn Magic! You re-discovered an entirely lost type of Magic! And you’re the first person to ever take all the Tracks at Hexside! And that's amazing - Sometimes I don’t think you even realize just how incredible half the stuff that you do is.” 

Amity’s own feelings aside, that much was true on it’s own - The things that Luz had been able to do since she got here had practically helped to rewrite what people thought was possible about Magic, about Humans, and about how everything worked. How things should work. There really couldn’t be any understatement regarding Luz’s accomplishments on that front - And that was just the stuff that hadn’t even been intentional!

“But there’s - There's so much more about you than that - You’re just this… You’re just this kind and caring and wonderful person. Every time something is bothering someone, no matter what the problem is, you always try to help them. That’s… It’s because of that that we even met in the first place, because you were helping Willow… And that was because of how I treated Willow…” 

Something that to this day, still made Amity feel immense guilt. 

“You didn’t have… Any reason to be nice to me after that… For the love of the Titan, I nearly got you dissected! And the next time we saw each other, I tried to get you to stop learning Magic because I had a bruised ego! But you just… You were still kind to me. You tried to help me whenever I was upset, or whenever I was in trouble, even when anyone would have forgiven you for just leaving me to whatever came my way. You stood up to Emira and Edric for me in the whole Library Incident, you lent me your Azura book and didn’t make fun of me for liking it, you helped me save the twins from the Slitherbeast… Even though you… Kind of were responsible for that in the first place - But you owned up to it. Anyone else would have tried to make an excuse, but you didn’t. You tried to make things right again. You put yourself at risk for anyone who needs it. You… You were willing to take on Grometheus for me. You’re so much braver than I am. And you… You’re just so...” 

Amity struggled to find the right word. She knew how to describe it, but she didn’t have the word that felt like it had the right impact, the right weight to it. Every word that she could think of felt weak, like it didn’t convey exactly what she wanted to convey. 

To describe Luz in one word… Everything about Luz that Amity admired. Everything about Luz that made Amity love her… 

Suddenly, it just clicked in her head. 

“...You’re the most _authentic_ person I’ve ever met.” She told the Human. And to reflect it, she gave her the most authentic smile Luz had ever seen. 

_Authentic._ The word made Luz’s eyes open up wider. 

“Everything you do is just so… Genuine.” Amity tried to explain herself properly, but ‘authentic’ was a hard word to clarify. “You’re so… Everything that I ever see you do, you do it with such… Energy. Enthusiasm. I’ve never met anyone who likes just learning Magic as much as you do. And it… It makes learning Magic exciting for me as well. You always try to do better. You make everyone around you want to be better than they are. You make me want to be better. It's only because of you that I’m the way I am now - I - I don’t think that I’ve changed… But - But you said that I did! So you can’t say that you don’t know why anyone would like you like that, because you made me like the person I’ve turned into because of you…” 

The smile faded, but Amity reached out to Luz, and dried her left cheek of the tears that ran down it, and cupped it in her hand. 

“...There’s no one else like you, Luz. So… Don’t say things like that…” 

Her eyes met Luz’s. 

And the smile returned. 

“...Because there’s nothing about you that I didn’t fall in love with.” 

Yet even more tears escaped Luz’s eyes, and her breathing became uneven, shaken, in short, scattered, segmented exhales, that cut themselves off for quarter-seconds as sobs tried to escape, but the Human held them back. 

Never in her life had she heard anything close to that. Nothing that had felt so heartfelt, that made her feel more like she truly had mattered to someone beyond even the remotest or furthest-fetched doubt. That she wasn’t some anomaly that no one could love. Like the mess hat was her life wasn’t a hell she had made for herself. 

That someone actually liked her - Hell, loved her - For the person that she was, and not the fake facsimile that the world had wanted her to pretend to be -

_It broke her._

“...We don’t to - I mean, you don’t have to answer anything now if you’re not comfortable with it, or if you can’t, or if you… Don’t…” Amity’s words trailed and tripped up one another. She had become aware of just what she had said, and how much she had rambled. She was becoming awkward now. “Just - I don’t - “

Luz gripped hold of Amity and hugged her as tightly as she was physically capable of holding onto her. Her head buried itself in Amity’s shoulder, and her teeth clenched down on one another, hard. She could feel her hands clinging onto the Witch’s clothes and digging her fingers into her flesh, and she was holding and gripping onto Amity so tightly that she was almost aware that she was hurting her friend. 

But she couldn’t let go. 

She needed to hold on tight. 

She needed to. 

_She needed to._

Because if she didn’t, somehow, she felt that she would lose her. 

She tried. 

She tried _so hard._

_She tried so hard not to._

She failed. 

She couldn’t stop the tears from soaking into Amity’s shoulder. She couldn't stop herself from shaking. She couldn’t stop the sobs from escaping, even though she tried so hard to keep them contained. She couldn’t stop herself from openly crying. Quickly, they turned into open sobs, which in turn turned into open wailing. Everything flooded out, and she couldn’t stop it. Some part of her didn’t even want to. 

She couldn’t begin to describe how those words had made her feel. 

She couldn’t describe how important they made her feel. How valued she felt. How… 

_How happy they made her._

And yet here she was. Crying, as if that made any sense. And clinging to the person who had made her feel this way, terrified that if she didn’t, she would go away and never come back somehow. 

Amity didn’t go away though. 

Instead, her body shook and hiccuped. 

Then she hugged Luz just as tightly as Luz had hugged her. 

And she was crying too. 

So the pair of them just stayed there for a while, holding one another and finally letting out all the tears that hadn’t yet been shed, nothing left to hold them back. It didn’t take long at all until Amity was crying, sobbing, and wailing just as loudly and openly as Luz. Everything that had been kept inside for months now finally spilled into the open. 

She clung just as tight. 

“I’m sorry…!” She managed to force out between sobs. “I’m sorry…!” 

For all the grief and guilt and stress she had caused. For hiding all of this from Luz. For not having it in her to be this honest from the start. 

Luz managed to choke out, “I’m sorry too… I’m so sorry…” 

For never noticing. For blocking it all out. For not being able to answer right now. For doing nothing but being a magnet for stress and anxiety for the other girl. 

And they held one another, for how long, neither of them were able to guess. It felt like both forever, and no time at all by the time that they managed to loosen their grips on one another. 

When they separated, their foreheads leaned against one another, and they held one another’s hands. Fingers interlaced with the others. Neither of them pulled away, or felt in the least bit embarrassed. In fact, both of them even managed to smile at the other. 

It was Amity who broke the silence first though. “...What… What do we do now then?...” 

“...I don’t know…”

So many contradictory things and feelings had been said and explored. So much had happened in such a short amount of time. And it really was just the tip of the iceberg, wasn’t it? 

These feelings that Luz didn’t know what to do with towards her - Her best friend. 

These feelings that she didn’t even know what they were. 

These feelings that felt so, so important now… 

She needed to figure out what they meant. 

There was very little that she wasn’t willing to do to figure out what they were. 

“...But I want to find out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn, this took a while to get out - Really sorry about that, everyone - I’ve had a lot of Uni projects to work on, and I’ve headed back to my family home for Christmas - This fic really did outlast Halloween, huh. Maybe I should change the description to make it seem less outdated. 
> 
> But here you all go - The conversation that you all wanted to happen - But you think we’re done yet? Well, good news - I ended up coming up with a couple more chapters I thought the story would benefit far better from than what I had originally planned, so you’re stuck with me for a little while longer I’m afraid : D (I don’t know why I keep doing this to myself I have so many other things to be working on) 
> 
> This chapter in particular was quite difficult to get right, but I think that it ended up being a fairly decent chat that needed to happen - but I don’t think Luz would be able to figure this all out just like that. That’s not how emotions work. 
> 
> So I hope that you all enjoyed, and that you’re looking forward to figuring out how Luz figures out how she feels : D I’ll see you soon!


	15. Time

Amity looked out of the window in what was her temporary home, until the Construction Coven had deconstructed the defences around Bonesborough, and repaired the infrastructure that had managed to get damaged during Valeween. Only then, would they head up to what used to be Blight Manor, and repair the building. The Blight family owned several pieces of property throughout the Isles, so it wasn’t like homelessness was ever a remote risk. 

Her parents knew about the destruction of their home now, since it was relayed to them through a series of couriers, though the nature of how the Manor was destroyed, thankfully, hadn’t reached them. And as such, they weren’t coming back until it was fixed. No doubt eventually, they would start asking how the Manor fell. Eventually they’d find out, but right now, Amity wasn’t capable of caring less. 

They had arranged for their children to stay elsewhere, and for payment to be made to the Construction Coven as needed. Upon completion of their job, of course. 

Where she was staying now was more akin to a more regular house that you’d see in any city on the Isles, but was still on the outskirts of the town, away from the common folk. Amity didn’t mind that so much - It meant that from the window, she could see the trees and plants that surrounded Bonesborough swaying in the wind. Her arms folded, and she allowed her shoulders to slacken. It was calming, seeing the regular colours on the flora of the Isles. 

It reminded her that Valeween was over. 

A sigh escaped her, as did the words, “It’s over…”. Like she was assuring herself just as much. 

She hadn’t taken the time to look at the colours since the invasion ended. Too much had been on her mind. She’d been too focused on the anxiety in her chest, and the simultaneous desires to run away as fast as possible, and finally get the answers that would ease her heart and mind, even if they shattered it to pieces in the process. Only now, in the last few hours, had she had the presence and peace of mind to actually look at the return of colour, and really take it in. Really acknowledge that Valeween was over. 

Relief washed over her. _It really was over._

Another sigh escaped her. She was alone, up late for the third night in a row. But this time, she wasn’t consumed with fear and regret, but with… Well, she wouldn’t call it peace. 

But it was something else. 

Emira and Edric were already asleep in their respective rooms - Amity didn’t know where they had ended up throughout Valeween, and hadn’t thought to ask. They knew the truth behind the Manor burning down though - When she was in a temporary hospital for the infected, someone, probably Willow, or Eda, had told them what had happened, how they had found them. They had promised not to say a word to their parents though, and Amity believed them. Her siblings were a pain, but what they weren’t, were snitches. That, and when they had apparently seen the state Luz was in, it became clear that whatever had happened, there hadn’t been much other choice. Combined with the fact they knew Amity was infected, and from what they heard - They were understanding, and didn’t ask any more questions. 

Amity was thankful for that. 

Valeween always left people asking all sorts of questions, no matter if they had been infected or not. Actions would be taken, words would be said, and secrets would be revealed. They held the capacity to be life changing events, every single time the Cherubim came to the Isles. 

Every memory that Amity had of Valeween had been one of those events. So far, she’d lived through three of them, and the first one was the only one that she had no memories of. The second one brought the truth about her parents into focus, shattered the illusions that she had built around them to try to convince herself that things would be okay. That she could work things out with them. That everything would just… Work. 

The Cherubim shattered that illusion. 

Before she was even ten years old, she understood that there was always going to be a division between her and her parents. That nothing was ever going to be good enough. She was supposed to be a tool, in just about every single way, with each and every imperfection systematically ironed out. 

Yet somehow, that had actually had something of a positive outcome - At least from Amity’s perspective. It hardened her resolve. Made her want to succeed, to prove herself. Prove that they were wrong. 

But how she had gone about such a task, and the outcomes of the way she went about them - Like how she had deluded herself into thinking she had done right by how she had treated Willow, in some weird, self-deceiving way that it would benefit Willow in the end somehow - That only changed when she met Luz. 

And maybe somehow, in some weird, twisted way, that had worked out too. Because if Amity hadn’t been like that, would she have ever met Luz? That was… Weird to even think about. 

Because Luz had become such an important aspect of her life. She showed the kindness Amity hadn’t received for years, or had it in her to be able to return to someone. Someone she didn’t feel judged by. Someone who understood her. Who knew she screwed up in a lot of major ways that would take a long time to fix, but didn’t cast her aside. The first friend that she had made for herself, in a long, long time, didn’t run when they saw the person she was. Who she had been. The person that Amity herself was ashamed of having been before. 

When she put it all out in front of her, Amity couldn’t even pretend to be surprised that she’d fallen in love with Luz.

And once more, the Cherubim had threatened to take that away. To expose the Witch to the cruel reality that now, she had come to expect. To take away even the false hope that Amity had been clinging on to. 

And once more, Luz managed to surprise Amity. 

_‘I don’t know how I feel about you.’_

Compared to the ‘No’ that she had been expecting, that was… A positive sign. The promise Luz made, that no matter what conclusion she came to, that they would always be friends, was one that had really helped Amity’s anxiety feel at ease though. That was the real thing she had been afraid of. 

Now though, she could at least hold onto that hope…

...Even if she didn’t see how Luz would feel the same. 

But it was good to know that Luz wouldn’t cut Amity off from her life. That had been the biggest fear, more than anything else. That made everything else feel easier. 

Tomorrow would be easier. The day after would be easier. The next week would be easier. The next - 

...The next week suddenly cropped into Amity’s mind. After everything that had happened, she had forgotten all about the Passover Festivus. 

That made Amity blink.

* * *

There was something there. 

_“ - Another pass from - “_

There was _something_ that Luz felt towards Amity. A feeling that she didn’t fully recognise, or understand. Not really. Something that did feel sort of familiar, but at the same time, completely foreign to her. It eluded her the more she tried to focus on it, and it got harder to figure out the more she actively tried to figure it out, yet she couldn’t bring herself to do anything but try to figure it out. It was like there was something missing that she couldn’t find the words for. It was hard to describe, because if there was one thing that she could be certain about regarding these feelings, it was that they felt like they were contradictory in nature. 

Or maybe that was _because_ she didn’t know, and that became a self fulfilling prophecy. 

Her mind would always go back to that afternoon, by the tree. By _their_ Grom Tree. Replaying all the words that they had said to one another. Again and again, until she felt she could recite it from memory… Which, well, she could, by definition. The things they talked about, the hugs they shared, and the emotions they spilled out to one another. 

Luz had hoped, really, _really hoped_ , that somehow, the feelings that she had in regards to Amity - Whatever they were - Would resolve themselves with time. That it would all just slot into place naturally, and that she’d be able to figure it all out over time. That she’d be able to pin down what these feelings were, and finally know what to do with them. 

That hadn’t happened at all. Even though they now were able to spend time together again, the haze surrounding the Humans heart still persisted. 

Part of her wondered if it existed just to torment her. 

Sometimes, being around Amity felt like the single easiest thing in the world. Like she didn’t even have to try in even the smallest way to get along with her. When it didn’t feel all that different to hanging around Gus or Willow. Amity was her friend, one of the closest friends that she had ever had. Sometimes, it felt like she was _the_ single best friend that she had ever had. With everything that they had gone through together, and everything that they had shared with one another, it was hard to feel otherwise. 

How _could_ she even feel otherwise? 

Times where she wanted nothing more than to just be around Amity, because just being around her meant that Luz was going to be around someone that made every moment feel important and _special_ , and that made her feel like nothing mattered more. Like just being around Amity made everything feel better. 

Even just sitting together in silence - That was something that Luz was very happy to do, so long as she was next to Amity. 

Luz had shared things with Amity that sometimes, she wondered if she would ever be able to tell her own mother. Yet she could say them to Amity with ease. She didn’t even have to _think_ about it half the time. 

Amity had her trust. Completely and totally. She had earned it. She _deserved_ it. 

_“ - An incredible use of fire Magic from - “_

But there were other times where Luz found herself not knowing what to say around Amity. Times where she didn’t know what exactly she was supposed to do, or what she was supposed to think. For all that she knew about Amity’s life now, there had always felt like there had been… Some kind of wall between them there. 

Not because they didn’t trust one another, or because Amity didn’t want to share things with her - But because Luz just… Didn’t know what to do. How to help. What to say to make things better. Because the problems that Amity faced with her parents, with her past, with how she saw herself, they all seemed huge and immeasurable compared to anything that Luz herself had to face. And while Amity would always forgive her, Luz knew she had royally screwed up sometimes, and it was times like that that she wished she could be as far away as physically possible from the Witch.

Out of fear, or shame, or guilt, or the fact that she knew that she would have disappointed Amity - Luz didn’t know which one it was yet.

That, and Amity always seemed like she was just… Better than Luz at a lot of stuff. Abomination Magic being just one of them. She was vastly smarter. She knew more about the theory and technicalities of Magic. She was insanely talented in so many areas. She was… Smart. 

_Good God, she was smart._

_“ - Uses their Magic and - And that's the final - “_

And it never stopped them from being friends. Not once, outside their initial, hostile meetings, had Amity made Luz feel like she was lesser for any of that - Her class, her Magic, or her lack of book-smarts. Amity always treated her like she was a friend, and never assigned malice to what she did. 

But it did remind Luz that they came from totally different worlds.

Literally and figuratively. Sometimes it made Luz feel that there was still a wall between them in some areas. But a small wall. One that didn’t really matter. Only it did. 

Did that make sense? 

“Luz?” 

Who was she kidding. None of this made any sense. Even in her own head it didn’t make any sense. It was based on nothing, really. All of this was uncharted territory and she wasn’t ashamed to admit that scared the hell out of her. 

Everything about this situation was just so _confusing_. The idea that someone - And of all people, Amity - liked her in that way was such a complete and total shock that she struggled to even begin to make sense of it. It had never happened before, never mind someone like Amity. That was all Luz could think about. All she could bring herself to focus on. 

_‘I don’t know how I feel about you.’_

_‘I don’t even know how to figure out how I feel about you.’_

_‘But I want to find out’_

Never before had Luz found herself in such a confusing, complicated situation that she couldn’t simplify to a basic conclusion. She couldn’t dumb this down to make it easier to understand, and she knew that there weren’t going to be any easy answers. She had no point of comparison to work from. None of this made sense, and none of it was going to be easy to figure it out.

At the same time, she’d never said, thought, or meant anything more in her life. 

She didn’t know - But she wanted to find out. 

She was _going_ to find out. 

She - 

“Luz!” 

A shaking on her shoulder snapped the Human back to reality. She blinked, her eyes opened up, and everything came back into focus, rather than the blurry daze that she had found herself in. “Huh, what - “ 

The sounds of her surroundings returned to her - She now heard cheering and applause from the people in the stands all around her, shouting chants and praise to those on the field below. Like they were celebrating - 

_Grudgby. Right. That was where she was._

“Again?” 

Luz glanced to her side, and at the expression that Willow was giving her. It was a look of growing concern for her mental well-being, and one of empathy from being in a similar situation to the Human. She didn’t even need to ask what was wrong. She already had a pretty good idea. 

This hadn’t been the first time that Luz had zoned out like this. And it wouldn’t be the last. 

A small sigh, and then a nod from Luz followed. “Yeah.” 

Time hadn’t remained still after what Luz had decided to call ‘The Tree Talk’. 

Days had passed, and more and more people who had been affected by the Cherubim were released back into wider society, once their injuries had been seen to, and more and more of the defensive measures were removed as the scenery of Bonesborough returned to its normal state. The guard-flora from the Plant Coven were removed and relocated into new eco-enclosures, while the various infrastructural implementations used by the Construction Coven were either dismantled so the materials could be used elsewhere, or converted into new buildings in order to become permanent additions to the town. All over the place, the various Covens either undid what they had set up, or were in talks with various civic planners on how to convert them for the public use. 

And it was hard not to feel like there was more and more growing tension between more and more individuals as that happened. 

People who would hide their faces whenever a particular person passed them by, some who would walk to the other side of the street when they saw someone else walking down the same way, and between those who had had far worse experiences, sometimes even violence breaking out, between people whom had had nothing but an absolute breakdown of even the mildest form of communication - This all became a common sight the more people were let out of medical custody. 

Despite Valeween having ended nearly a week ago now, the after-effects of it were still extremely prominent, and it was clear that no matter what happened, they would remain like this for quite some time. Months before even a semblance of normalcy returned, and a lot of relationships would never be the same again. 

Yet at the same time, the work to return to the way things were wasn’t done yet. There were still plenty of things that had to be done before anything that came close to ‘normal’ could begin. But doing that was next to impossible when society only just barely functioned as it was.

So the need for some sort of distraction became abundantly clear for people within the cities across the Isles. Activities. Sports. Games. Community events. Things people could bond over. Things that could help people forget for just a little while - Just whatever they could find to try to take people's minds off of things, to try to fix at least some of the wounds that Valeween had brought, and return to a semblance of normalcy again, even if - Again - it was only for a short while. 

Today, it had been a series of public Grudgby matches, organised by the various schools scattered across the Titan. Sports and competition helped to get people engaged and enthused, and it could serve as a bonding exercise for all involved, both on the field, and in the stands. 

That wasn’t why Luz was here though. If she were being honest, she had only come for a few reasons, one of which being that Willow had asked her to, and another because she had thought a slight change of pace might have helped. But as with everything else since the Tree Talk, Luz’s mind returned back to it, as she tried to figure out what the heck she was going to do about… All of that. 

Seven days later, and she still wasn’t any closer to figuring it out. 

As people began to disperse from the stalls, and the surrounding chatter became quieter as people left the stadium, Luz and Willow stayed behind, sitting still in their seats. They still had a reason to stay behind. Curious, and finding the silence between the two slightly awkward, Luz opted to ask, “So… Did we win?”

Willow nodded. “Hexside won.” 

“Go team.” Luz made a small gesture of a raised fist, but her heart wasn’t in it at all, and it looked more like a weak attempt to tap something that wasn’t there. She let her hand flop to her side, and she sighed. 

“Are you okay?” Willow asked, gently leaning forward to try and get a better look at Luz’s expression. 

It hadn’t been worth the effort - The look on Luz’s face was just… Vacant. The expression of someone who had far too much on their mind. 

“Yeah, I’m… I’m fine.” Luz nodded, her voice distant. As soon as she spoke though, she realized how distant and uninterested she had come across, and quickly looked at Willow properly. “Sorry, I just…” Her hands perked up, and tried to make some kind of gesture, though it failed to make any sense. “....Amity, y’know?” 

“...Still not figured it out yet?” A slightly superfluous question, she supposed, but it was all Willow could think to ask. 

“No.” Luz slumped into her seat, and slid down it a bit so she was halfway leaning down on it. “I just… I can’t figure it out. I just…” An exhale followed. It always made even less sense when she tried to put it into words. 

Thankfully though, Willow understood well enough. She had been the one person who Luz felt could really understand, given her situation with Boscha. She knew what it was like to have feelings of conflict and uncertainty like this. 

It wasn’t a perfect comparison, of course. There were differences between their situations. One of which being the nature of the relationship with her confessor, as well as their history with one another. On that particular front, they were pretty dramatically different situations. 

_“I told you that we’d win!”_

Another difference being the fact that Willow actually seemed to be making progress when it came to her situation. 

Perking herself up so she wasn’t slouched down in the seat of the chair, Luz saw that Boscha had made her way so that she was within earshot of the seats the pair of them were sitting in. The expression on her face was one of smugness and pride. For all the ways that Boscha had changed over the months, the one way in which she hadn’t changed in the slightest was the way she took pride in crushing her opposition. 

“I didn’t even break a sweat.” The three-eyed Witch boasted, her arms folding and her smirk growing.

Her statement was mostly directed towards Willow, who returned with what Luz could only describe as a smug grin of her own. “I don’t know. I thought I saw a few moments where you nearly let them score the final point.” 

“Scoreboard doesn’t lie.” 

“I’m impressed you didn’t need the Rusty Smidge to win this one.” 

“Hey, a win is a win. No need to get hung up on what happened when you two played us.”

Willow laughed gently, before her smile became more genuine. “Fair. Congratulations. Seriously.” 

That wasn’t a compliment that Boscha would have been unused to hearing, given her position as the Grudgby Team Captain - If anything, Luz would have imagined that she would have been sick of hearing that by now - But Boscha’s entire persona seemed to shift when Willow said it. Her face went a more reddish shade, and all her eyes dared away from the Plant Witch. 

“Yeah, well, it’s… It’s not really all _that_ special.” It was still bizarre for Luz to see Boscha acting bashful like this, or immediately downplaying any of her accomplishments. But it seemed like it was a reaction that she only had when it came to Willow. 

Maybe because Willow was now acutely aware of Boscha’s feelings towards her. Back when they ran into one another before Valeween, and during the event, she didn’t act like this. Now that Willow knew though, she acted differently. 

And it was a shift Willow also noticed, but she didn’t bother to say anything, or point it out. She just let it happen without calling any attention to it. Luz could tell that that was something that Boscha had noticed too, and appreciated. 

The interactions between the two of them had changed so much within a week that if she hadn’t known their past and history, Luz might have suspected that they had been at least on talking terms for years now. Over the course of said week, a whole new dynamic seemed to have formed between the pair of them, where they would almost tease one another in certain contexts that Luz could only assume were consistent to them, but had become overall far more friendly, and while it was still finding its grounding, and while Willow still didn’t know what exactly she thought of the whole ‘Boscha liking her’ thing, she had agreed to try being friends with Boscha first, and seeing where that went. 

Willow meant it too - It would have been very easy for her to just play lip service to the idea, and to then never allow anything to go beyond that vague promise. She would have had a perfect justification for it too. 

But she wasn’t. Because she wasn’t that sort of person. She had said as much back when Luz first asked her about Valeween, and her record when it came to honesty spoke for itself. She had said that she would see where this went, and she was being true to that. Willow was actually giving Boscha a fair chance. 

And in spite of whatever reservations either she or Luz had had about it, it was hard to deny that Boscha was trying too. There were still aspects of her which were distinctly ‘Boscha’, but people didn’t completely change over the course of a single day. And it was obvious that she hadn’t been complacent either - She was still trying to be better than she had been.

That was pretty much the primary reason that Willow had decided to come see this match in the first place. 

“Hey, Boscha!” From the other side of the field, one of the members of the team called over to their captain. They, and the rest of the team, were headed back into the Grudgby Barracks, presumably to receive praise and congratulations, and then get changed and head on home, or wherever else. “You coming?”

“I’ll be there in a minute!” Boscha yelled back to them. She gave them a thumbs up as she did, as if to let them know to head on in without her.

The Grudgby player paused for a moment, shrugged, and then ducked into the Barracks themselves, followed by a couple of their teammates, while Boscha turned back to Willow and Luz, and after a few seconds of silence, glanced away from looking directly at them, a redness covering her cheeks again. 

“So, er…” She glanced at Luz, and then back to Willow, before Luz again, and then Willow again, like she was trying to figure out who she was even supposed to address. “...Can I talk to you alone for a minute, Willow? It’s… About the Passover Festivus.” 

Luz blinked, cluelessly. “The what now?” 

To that, Boscha’s eyes all turned to Luz, quirked in confusion. Luz’s confusion with the term seemed to in and of itself confuse the Witch, who looked at her like she had grown a second - and because that wouldn’t be unusual on the isles, a subsequent third head. “Do Humans not like, celebrate things?” 

“Huh?” 

“I’ll explain it to you later.” Willow told her Human friend, giving her a gentle smile. “It’s not a huge thing. But um… Could you give us a minute, please?” 

One of the Humans eyebrows raised, mostly in confusion as to what this 'Passover Festivus' was supposed to be - And why the heck the Boiling Isles had a holiday that sounded like one that came from Earth - But she nodded, and got up, giving the two of them some distance to talk for a bit. In spite of whatever reservations she had at any point, this whole situation was between Willow and Boscha, and Luz would only let herself get involved if the situation called for it. She had promised herself that when she ran into them last week, and she was sticking to it. 

Even if she still struggled to know what to make of it sometimes. Her thoughts on Boscha were just as contradictory. 

They had managed to get front row seats to this mostly thanks to Boscha, so Luz made her way along the perimeter of the front row, until she was outside of earshot of the two of them. People were still making their ways out of the seating areas, talking in groups, or hanging around for whatever their personal reasons were, but the area was becoming more and more sparse. Luz watched a few people as they left, since she had little else to do. She then glanced back at Willow and Boscha, wondering what they were talking about, and what Boscha had meant by the ‘Passover Festivus’. It was a celebration, if Boscha’s reaction to her confusion had been anything to go by. 

While she was in one of those makeshift hospitals thanks to her Cherubim injury, Eda had mentioned something about celebrations, and Luz did remember a few other times they had been brought up. Maybe the Passover Festivus was the name of the celebrations? 

Okay… So, what were they, then? 

Luz just yawned - For some reason, she felt tired, even though she hadn’t really done anything today that would normally tire her out. Yet she still felt like if she laid down, paradoxically, she’d never be able to get to sleep. 

This wasn’t the first time that she had been this particular brand of exhausted over the last week. Maybe it was all the thinking. That had all she had really been doing for the last few days now. Thinking. 

Constantly. 

From the corner of her eye, Luz saw the Grudgby players that were scattered all over the playing - For lack of a better word, arena - were all either in the Grudgby Barracks now, or were just about to enter. Luz glanced out over the arena, until her eyes eventually landed on green, and her heart did an involuntary jump. 

_Amity_. 

The matches were important to people in Bonesborough - After all the chaos that had befallen them, people needed these sorts of distractions to feel normal again. And thanks in no small part to the match that they had had against Boscha months ago, and Luz’s encouragement over the last couple of days, Amity had decided to take part in the match when Boscha asked if she was interested. Why Boscha had asked was still something of a mystery, but Luz had a feeling Willow might have had a hand in it. 

Almost like she could tell that she was being watched, Amity froze still for a second, and then looked behind her - Her eyes fell on Luz almost immediately, able to spot the Human like she was a fire Demon in a stone castle. 

Once Amity saw her, Luz couldn’t help but feel herself freeze up. Somehow, she felt weird, like she had done something wrong - 

But that feeling quickly went away when Amity just smiled and gave her a gentle wave. Luz returned the wave, and felt herself smiling instinctually back. The smile on the Witch’s lips seemed to just grow bigger, and her expression briefly changed into one of just overwhelming fondness, before she turned around, and ducked into the team Barracks. 

Now, Luz knew exactly why it was that Amity gave her looks like that. She didn’t block it out anymore. And it still felt as surreal as it did when she first learned how Amity felt about her. A part of her mind was even still in denial about it - It was just so… It just went so against everything that Luz thought about herself. It was still so difficult for her to fully understand why Amity saw her like this. What Amity saw in her. 

What in the world she had done to make someone like Amity be in love with her? 

Of all the people that Amity could fall in love with - Why had it been her? When the Witch could have had anyone she wanted - It was her she had fallen for? 

As much as Luz wanted to be able to give her a proper answer, all this confusion, all this uncertainty, all this… Everything in her heart that made her do next to nothing other than think about the Witch and what the nature of their relationship really was - It all made it so difficult to know. To really, really know. But Amity had been patient. She never once pressed Luz for an answer. The most she would ever do is ask, and when Luz couldn’t answer, she would drop it all at once. 

And the considerate way that she acted just made Luz’s heart all the more fuzzy and foggy. And made her reassess every interaction they had ever had, making her wonder if the times Amity had previously shown her such kindness was because of her feelings for the Witch had for her. 

It felt like she was still missing something. 

Or was still blocking something out. 

Luz’s head slumped against the barrier, her chin resting on the railing, and a groan escaped her. Feelings were difficult. 

Whatever this feeling was, it wasn’t explicitly new. She had felt it before - It was part of what she felt the night before Valeween, when Amity yelled at her, telling her to stay away on Valeween itself. Only back then, she had been more sad than anything else, agonizing over what she had thought she had done wrong. This feeling had been there, mixed with that. 

It had just gone unnamed until now. And Luz still didn’t know what to call it. 

Amity was special to her. She wouldn’t have spent this much time thinking about it if she wasn’t. 

...And that was scary too.

* * *

Amity hadn’t known exactly what to think when Boscha approached her out of the blue during the week, and asked her if she wanted to play a match alongside the old Hexside team. It had been somewhat out of nowhere, and for a short period of time, Amity hadn’t really known how to respond to the question. 

It was only when Boscha explained that it was a part of the activities that were meant to promote community togetherness that she understood what the purpose of asking had been in the first place. 

Until that point, Amity hadn’t been even the least bit aware of anything that had been happening regarding Boscha, so Luz had had to explain it all to her - Amity would admit, none of what she learned had been what she had expected to hear. Collectively put together, it was probably the last thing that she expected to hear, actually. 

Still, Boscha asking now at least made a certain amount of sense. Either Willow had asked her, or Boscha saw it as a way to prove she was different. 

Whichever one it was, Amity didn’t know. If what Luz told her was accurate though, that seemed more like something Willow would need to figure out on her own. Because to her, one of those options seemed slightly underhanded, whereas the other didn’t. 

The Witch shoved her Grudgby jacket into her shoulder-sling bag, and pulled her necklace over her head. A quick scan of the space she had changed in revealed that she hadn’t left anything behind. She then left, and ended the corridors of the Barracks, aiming to leave them, and meet up with Willow and Luz, who were going to wait for her before they all headed back into Bonesborough together. 

And apparently, Boscha would be joining them too. Mostly on account of Willow. 

It was only because Luz had encouraged her that Amity had agreed to play this match in the first place, but she would admit, it had actually been kind of fun to play the game again, just like it had been back when she played alongside Luz against Boscha. 

_Fun_. 

As soon as the Boiling Rain had begun to fall, and as Amity could just _feel_ it in her gut that Valeween was on its way in spite of how much she wished that it wasn’t, the last thing that she had thought would come her way at any point over the next few weeks would be anything even resembling _fun_. She had thought she would have been lucky if she managed to get through this whole mess without everything falling apart. The entire week leading up to the Cherubim invasion had been her fearing that everything that had made her life even remotely fun or bare able was about to fall to pieces in front of her. 

But of course, it had been Luz who had encouraged her to do this. Because of course it had been. Of course it would have been Luz that would be responsible for her actually engaging in something fun. 

After she had been hit by the Cherubim, and had been made to express her full feelings towards Luz - How she was in love with the Human, and how much she wanted her to stay on the Isles, and how much she hated herself for being so selfish - Amity was amazed Luz still wanted to be around her at all. The fact that Luz didn’t want her to stay away, that she wanted to still be friends, that she would still willingly spend time with her… Losing that was what Amity had been afraid of this entire time. That the person who she had fallen for, who she felt had finally seen her, who she could be open to didn’t want to get as far away from her as possible… 

That was more than she could have ever expected. It was more than she felt she deserved. 

A week later though, and Luz still hadn’t figured out how she felt about Amity. If she could see the Witch in the same way that the Witch saw her. If what was there was anything like how Amity felt about her, or if it just... Wasn’t.

Luz had already given her… So, so much more than she had expected. 

Amity was happy to wait for as long as Luz needed her to before she heard an answer regarding all of that.

Reaching a crossroad, Amity turned a corner, and with just a half-second to spare, stopped before she ran into someone coming out of one of the bathrooms. She took a step back, and was about to apologise, when she saw exactly who it had been she had been about to run into. 

Boscha. 

“Oh!” Both of them had the same reaction at just about the same time, and then paused for a split second. The two had barely spoken to one another over the last few months. It wasn’t exactly easy to figure out what to say to one another. 

“...Hi.” Boscha spoke first, her hands shovelling into her Grudgby jacket as she did so. 

“...Hey.” Amity replied, fairly plainly. 

The exchange was awkward. They were former ‘friends’ who both shared a similar situation and experience to one another during Valeween, who were now headed towards the same location to meet the same people - What were they supposed to do? 

Walk there together? Or go in opposite directions, arrive separately, and just pretend to have not seen one another? If they went together, did they speak at all? 

Hell, were they even supposed to talk now? 

Again, it was Boscha who broke the silence. “So… Thanks, I guess. For showing up today. Glandus’s team was a lot better than the last time we played them. I think you threw them off.” 

“...It’s fine.” Amity said, shrugging her shoulders slightly. “It was… A nice change of pace.” 

“Yeah, well, I know you didn’t do it for our sake.” Boscha said. Under normal circumstances, Amity might have considered that hostile, but the tone of Boscha’s voice, and the way she held herself, were far more neutral. “The Human’s the reason you played, right?” 

_“Luz_ encouraged me to play.” Amity nodded. “But I didn’t do this for her sake either. _I_ decided to play.” Though admittedly, she didn’t know if she would have come to that conclusion without Luz’s encouragement. 

“Right.” Boscha nodded.. “Figures. Still. Thanks.”

Another brief moment of silent awkwardness passed between the two of them. 

“...We’re headed in the same direction, right?” Boscha asked. 

Amity just nodded. 

“And meeting the exact same people.” 

“...Apparently.” 

“...So… What’re we doing here?” Boscha finally questioned. “Do you want to walk together, or… Should one of us hang back, or what?” 

It was actually odd, Amity noted - Clearly the situation was as awkward for Boscha as it was for her, but at the same time, there was a… Willing talkativeness about Boscha that she had only ever noticed her having back when they were still sociable with one another. The same way that she would engage in gossip with Skara about whatever subjects came up whenever. 

Despite the awkwardness, she seemed… Happy, almost. Normally she would be more confrontational even at the best of times. But she seemed like she was in a paradoxically good mood. Even though the way she showed it was in a way only someone who knew her for years would be able to put together.

So Amity shrugged, and said, “We don’t need to be weird about this.” It wasn’t a direct answer, but it got the point across. 

Both of them made their way down the corridors that would lead them to the exits. From there, they would make their way around to the main entrance, where Willow and Luz would be waiting for them both. 

For a few seconds, the walk was generally silent. Even back when they were social, Amity never really had a ton to say to Boscha. They were friends by forced association, not because they actually liked one another, had much in common, or even circumstantial friends that hung out because they had no one else to hang out with. And she had even less to say after they had fallen out since she sided against the three eyed Witch in her match against Willow and Luz. 

That was ironic, wasn’t it - They stopped talking because of that game, and now it was the same two people that were the reason they were even within five feet of one another without malicious intent. 

“...So.” Amity started, not looking towards Boscha as she spoke. “You and Willow, huh?” 

Boscha blinked, and then seemed to shrink slightly. “Yeah, go ahead and laugh it up. The irony isn’t lost on me.” 

“I’m not judging you.” Amity answered simply, and honestly too. It wasn’t any business of hers who Boscha was interested in. “Willow’s a friend of mine - “

“Ah.” Boscha stood upright, and allowed herself to smirk, and put on a teasing tone. “So that's what this is. Is this the part where you tell me to stay away from her?”

Amity still didn’t face Boscha. “That depends on Willow. If she’s fine with you, then that’s her choice. I’m not gonna tell her who she should or shouldn’t date.”

“You sound like the Human.” 

“...Luz has spoken to you about this?” 

“Not explicitly. But she’s implied the same. Anyway, is there a point to you asking about…” Boscha’s words temporarily got caught in her throat. “...Me… Liking Willow?” 

Hearing it out loud for the first time from Boscha’s mouth directly briefly stunned Amity before she carried on. “I’m just surprised I guess. You’ve not exactly been…” She trailed off. The words she would use to describe Boscha were… 

Not exactly diplomatic. 

“...Been what?” Boscha questioned. “A remotely good person to her? A bitch?” 

“...Well…” 

“Well… You’re not wrong.” The Potions Witch sighed, and let her head hang. “I’m aware, Amity. I’m not exactly proud of it, you know.” 

Somehow, that was easy to believe. “...So… When did it change?” 

For a moment, Boscha paused, and looked up towards the ceiling, like she was searching through her memories directly. She didn’t say anything for a solid thirty seconds, and Amity began to think that she had simply chosen to ignore the question. 

“...I don’t know.” Boscha finally admitted, a long exhale following the answer. “It was after our match, for sure. I guess I…”

Another pause. 

“...After you left, I…” 

Amity’s ears perked up. 

“I don’t know. It took a while, but I guess I just… I guess I started to wonder if anyone would ever be willing to side with me like you sided with Willow. You pretty much threw away your entire reputation for those two. No thanks to me, obviously, but… I guess I wanted to know why you were willing to do that. So I just… Watched. I watched her, and the stuff she did, and the way she acted and treated people and…” 

She made a weird gesture with her hands. 

“...I don’t get how she does it. Just, all the time. There’s got to be people she hates, right?” 

“Wait, does what?” Amity asked, eyebrow raised. “How she does what?” 

“Be so… Absurdly _nice_ to everyone!” Boscha let her hands swing to her side. “And people like her for it - She doesn’t need to rely on status or power or anything like that, and people want to be around her, and…” 

Another pause. Boscha looked towards Amity.

“...It’s not like how we were brought up, is it?” 

“...No.” Amity shook her head. They both came from another world. Different rules applied to them, normally. But at Hexside, there were people who didn’t abide by those rules. Who forewent them, and made connections on their own. 

“Yeah, well… I guess I admire that.” Boscha looked away. “And then we ended up running into each other a few times, we got assigned for a project together, and we talked and… Well, here we are now.” 

She was leaving gaps, of course - Somehow Amity had a feeling she didn’t want to go in depth as to how she had fallen in love exactly, - Boscha wasn’t exactly known for her ability to talk about her feelings in depth to people - but here she was. In love with Willow, and trying to figure out what she was supposed to do, or where to go from here. 

It wasn’t all that dissimilar to how Amity fell for Luz, now that she thought about it. 

“And now, for Titan knows what reason, she’s going with me to the Passover.” Boscha couldn’t hide the smile from her voice. 

At that, Amity looked to Boscha, and saw that she couldn’t hide the smile from her lip either. “Seriously?” 

“I just asked her. After the game.” 

That explained her good mood, Amity thought to herself. 

She was surprised, for sure - Willow had pointed out over the last couple of months that she thought that Boscha had at least changed a bit, but that didn’t take away from all the crap that Boscha had put her through. To hear a confession from someone who treated her the way that Boscha had, and then be willing to go to the Passover together… 

Willow wasn’t a fickle person - She was smart. She understood that it didn’t mean she had to forgive everything that Boscha had done, or even had to reciprocate anything that Boscha felt towards her. And Amity knew Willow knew all of this when she decided to give Boscha a fair chance. 

It just surprised Amity that Willow was willing to go this far for it. 

“...Yeah, I know.” Boscha said, against the silence that had fallen while Amity had gone silent in her thoughts. “It doesn’t mean she’s forgiven me for everything that happened. It’ll take time, and there’s no guarantee. But I’m just… I… I’m glad she’s giving me a chance, you know?”

The other girl didn’t say anything. 

“I’ve got a lot to fix. I’m not a fucking idiot. But… I want to make it up to her somehow. She’s giving me the chance to, so…” 

Amity looked away from Boscha again. It was honestly hard to deny that there had been a degree of retrospection within Boscha, and maybe that was the reason Willow was willing to give Boscha the chance she was giving her. 

It wasn’t like Amity didn’t understand either - She understood Boscha very well in this respect. It was how she felt when she was fixing things with Willow. When she was fixing the screw ups she had made when it came to Luz. When it came to… A lot of stuff. 

Understanding that it wasn’t a given, and that it would take time, and work, and that even then, there wasn’t an obligation. But even just being thankful for the _chance_ to fix the screw ups. Even though it would inevitably lead to more screw ups down the line, but the goal wasn’t to become a perfect person - Of all people, Amity knew that was impossible, no matter how much one was pushed, or how hard one tried - but to just be better. 

She was still filled with mixed opinions regarding the three eyed Witch. She didn’t _like_ Boscha by any means. Still though…

...She understood her. 

“...Willow could do a lot worse than you.” 

Boscha just blinked, actually surprised for a moment. “...I think that might actually be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” 

“Just don’t prove me wrong.” 

* * *

“So is it like… A date?” 

“...Um…” For a second, Willow paused as she thought about it. Her eyebrow raised up, and she glanced towards the sky for a moment as she considered. Eventually, she settled on a very non-committal answer of, “...It sort of is, and it sort of isn’t?” 

“I’m… Not sure I follow.” Luz blinked, confused. “I mean, it sounds like a date to me.” 

Boscha had asked Willow to go with her to this Valeween Passover Festivus - And what that was, Luz still wasn’t entirely sure, exactly. That had been what Boscha had wanted to ask Willow in private, and Willow had apparently accepted the invitation. Which meant that they would be spending the entirety of whatever the heck this Passover was supposed to be together. 

To Luz, that sounded like a date. She didn’t exactly have any other context to come to any other conclusion - And as much as Luz would stand by Willow, her agreeing to go on a date with Boscha this soon after Valeween, after everything that had happened over the last few years, long before Luz had ever arrived to see it happen - 

_Wasn’t that rushed?_

Not that it was Luz’s place to try to convince or stop her from doing anything, but still - She could be worried, couldn’t she? 

“Don’t Humans do… Anything like this?” Willow asked, echoing the question Boscha had asked earlier, like it surprised her too. An eyebrow was still raised, but this time she looked directly at her friend. “When something bad has passed, don’t you celebrate the fact that you’re all alright?” 

“Not where I’m from.” Luz answered plainly. “Well, some people do, and there's a holiday with nearly the same name, but it's not like this. And we don’t normally celebrate… Basically a natural disaster coming and going. We don’t have anything remotely like Valeween on Earth. Nothing like the Cherubim or… Anything even close to what you guys have here, actually.”

To that, Willow nodded, indicating that she understood - Fundamentally, this was another cultural difference between Earth and the Isles that came down to how different the environments were. With nothing like this happening on Earth, and no wildlife or any reason to even mark an event like Valeween as notable, celebrations like the Passover Festivus just never really became a thing in the Human Realm. 

Not all that different to how the Isles didn’t really have a concept of Halloween, like Luz had taught them about the other week. 

“Okay…” She muttered, before talking up again. “Well, it’s more to do with the Passover Festivus than anything. There’s a sort of… Grey area for this sort of thing.” 

“So… What the heck is this Passover thing?” Luz asked. At this point, she was dying to know what in the world she was supposed to expect. 

“It’s basically a festival.” Willow explained. “You’ve noticed that a lot of people have been kind of tense towards each other, right?” 

“Uh-huh.” Luz nodded, once. It had been difficult not to notice - Tons of people had been acting oddly all over the Isles. The fact that they needed to have big events like this spoke to how tense the social situation had been since Valeween. 

“Right.” Willow nodded as well. “Well, it’s sort of supposed to be a festival where everyone is supposed to finally put that all aside and try to reconcile. We all get together in the marketplace, and there are stalls, games, music, all that sort of thing.” 

“So it’s like a carnival?” 

“Basically.” The Plant Witch confirmed. “But it’s more symbolic than anything. You know how no one has really been arrested or punished or anything for acting out because of anything that might have happened to them because of the Cherubim’s influence?” 

That had been an interesting difference between the Isles and Earth, Luz had noticed - Back on Earth, whatever the reason, if people acted up like some had been doing on the Isles, they would have been arrested right on the spot. But that wasn’t the case on the Isles. Granted, the circumstances were very different - The Cherubim had made them act in ways they normally wouldn’t, and had left them not entirely in control of their own actions.

So no one had been arrested, or really fully condemned or ostracised, or anything like that since the invasion. Whenever someone lashed out, it wasn’t even usually the Emperors Coven who broke apart any fights or arguments or anything like that when they occurred - It was mostly other residents of the Isles who stopped them. 

It was almost like an extension of what Luz had noticed throughout the last couple of weeks - How it became a communal effort to get everyone through the event. But outside of this event, the Isles still deferred a lot of authority to the Emperors Coven. 

Meaning that at some point, things would have to return to normal. Like they had to have done every Valeween before. 

“The Passover Festivus is the point where that changes.” Willow went on. “The idea is that it’s supposed to be something of an event where everyone who has whatever issues with the other finally confronts the other, and just sort of so… Whatever they need to do to get the issues resolved. At least to the point they’re not fighting each other in public. If people want to fight, there’s an area for that.” 

“People fight each other at this thing?” Luz blinked. “Like, with Magic?” 

“It’s watched over by a bunch of people so no one gets hurt too badly.” Willow explained. “And it’s only if both parties agree to do it. It’s better than them destroying a street two months down the line - And if they do do that, then the Emperor’s Coven arrests them. Everything that happens after the Festivus becomes the Emperor’s Coven’s business. It’s kind of like the cut off point for when they become peacekeepers again.” 

Though Luz had… Many thoughts on calling the Emperor's Coven _‘Peacekeepers’_ at this point, the logic of the festival now made sense to her. It was supposed to be used as the final chance for people to face one another while still getting to use the Cherubim’s influence as an excuse for their actions. 

Back during Valeween, people legitimately had had no control over their actions. Now that they were back in control, while their trauma and grievances were legitimate, they had to be able to put them aside in order for society to function. The Cherubim’s influence could be an explanation for their actions, but not an excuse. And this festival, this Passover Festivus - That was the cutting off point that the Isles had collectively decided upon.

That… Made a degree of sense. Obviously it wouldn’t solve every issue, and there would be issues with many people over what had happened this Valeween, probably for years to come in some cases, but lashing out publicly wasn’t acceptable after that point. 

...Although, now that she understood that…

“...Wait, so, what - Are you and Boscha gonna _fight?_ ” She asked, suddenly alarmed at wha Willow had just agreed to.

Willow blinked, hard, and then quickly held her hands up in front of her. “No! No, no, nothing like that! It’s -“ A small sigh escaped her, and then a slight blush appeared on her cheeks. “Getting a confession on Valeween isn’t the most uncommon thing to hear about. Quite a few people end up getting them. So, if you were affected by a Cherubim, and confessed to someone, it’s… Something of an informal tradition to ask the person they confessed to to go to Passover Festivus with them. Like a way of showing them that they were serious about what they said.” 

Luz let herself relax slightly - For a moment, she had seriously thought that Willow had agreed to just engage in the Boiling Isles equivalent of a bare-knuckle cage fight. Now that she knew that wasn’t the case, she could let herself calm down a bit, but she still had half a dozen questions. 

One of which related to Amity.

“...How did that start?” She asked, her curiosity regarding the event temporarily taking center stage. “I kinda feel like confessing that you like someone under a Truth Beam is… Kind of proof enough, isn’t it?” 

For her part, Willow shrugged, and held her hands up in such a way to indicate her ignorance. “I don’t know. There are a bunch of old stories from the Savage Ages about people who made big declarations of love after being made to confess by a Cherubim, and some people think it comes from that. It’s just… Something that happens.” 

Similar stories existed on Earth for how certain traditions that seemed arbitrary or didn’t make sense had come into being. Sometimes, that sort of thing was simply lost to time, so Luz decided to drop that particular line of questioning. 

“It’s not like not asking someone after confessing means that you don’t actually like them.” Willow added on. “And sometimes people get rejected, so not everyone always asks.” 

Well, that answered that question regarding Amity, Luz thought to herself. Amity’s biggest fear was being rejected. And even though they were still friends, and would be no matter what, it made sense that she was still afraid of being rejected. 

It wasn’t like she could blame the Witch either - She still didn’t know how she felt about Amity herself, or what these feelings towards the Witch were, exactly. If they were the feelings of protectiveness and closeness that anyone would feel towards their closest friends - A thing Luz had only had a limited experience with in the first place - or if this was more than that. 

They felt like more than that. But Luz didn’t know if that meant that she was… 

_...In love with Amity._

That sentence passed through her mind for what seemed to be the first time since she had been confessed to, and it made her heart jolt for a moment - It had been something she’d just… Not really allowed to cross into her mind as she tried to figure out how she felt. But that was what this boiled down to at the end of the day, and trying to keep it out of her mind wasn’t doing her any favours. 

She’d been both looking for the answer, and blocking out one of the avenues that she would have needed to consider to come to an answer at the same time. 

Partly because what affected her back on Earth was still something that she hadn’t been able to fully accept. 

_She still struggled to see how Amity could see her in the way that she did._

But Amity felt how she said she felt - Luz didn’t deny that, or think that she was lying. She hadn’t been capable of lying while under the influence of the Cherubim, and Luz believed every word that she had said at the Grom Tree. It was more…

...Like there was a veil around Luz, that throughout her whole life, no one had gotten through. Or had even tried to get though. And it had made Luz feel like that veil was impenetrable. That nothing would get through it - That no one would want to. 

And now Amity had. And Luz just couldn’t fathom _why_ she had crossed over it. How she could see her as worth it. 

What she saw in the Human. 

Even a week later, she still didn’t know. 

“Hey, are you okay?” Willow suddenly asked, and Luz found herself snapping out of the thoughts she once more had found herself lost within, and back into reality. When she snapped to, and looked towards Willow, the Plant Witch raised an eyebrow. “Again?” 

“...Yeah.” Luz nodded, smiling awkwardly. This was the second time in under an hour. 

Willow exhaled, and leaned back against the wall she was next to. “Are you sure you’re alright? You’ve been spacing out a lot more lately.” 

“Y - Yeah, Yeah, I’m fine. Just...Amity, y’know?” Luz answered, the same excuse as she had used earlier being the best she could offer. 

For a moment, it looked like Willow was going to say something in response to that, but she held off on it, and tilted her head up, and above Luz, something behind the Human having caught her eye. Before Luz could look for herself, a small smirk crept onto Willow’s lips, and she nodded behind her friend. “Speaking of which.” 

Luz turned, and felt herself gulp when she saw that approaching the two of them, was Amity. 

And Boscha, actually. Both she and Amity were walking together, and surprisingly, weren’t arguing with one another. They seemed to be talking, at least tentatively. They still had their own issues between one another, but Boscha’s confession to Willow had at least put the two of them within the same social spheres, at least for now. 

Once Amity saw that Luz was looking their way though, it seemed like all conversation stopped between the two, as she waved gently towards her Human friend. Boscha did the same for Willow, who responded with a gentle wave of her own. 

Meanwhile, Luz just sort of stood there, for some reason now freezing up, the question of if she was in love with Amity now rattling the inside of her head. 

It really could not have come at a more inopportune time. 

“Hey.” Willow greeted the pair of them once they were in earshot. She greeted them both with as friendly a smile as she would any of her friends.

“Hey.” Boscha replied, but she couldn’t bring herself to look at Willow - Her eyes darted to the side, and a smile she tried to hide spread, probably unwillingly. 

“Hey.” Amity said with a small nod. Her gentle smile and eyes were directly pretty much entirely towards Luz. 

“Hey!” Luz greeted, ever so slightly louder than she had meant to. For some reason, she didn’t have a clue what she was supposed to do with her hands, because just standing there felt awkward, and decided to snap her fingers into finger-guns, pointed towards Amity - Apparently this was the best her brain could do on a second's notice. “Hey, er, good game, you two! Good job on the whole… Winning, thing.” 

To that, Amity smiled a bit wider, and her cheeks went slightly redder. “Thanks. And, thanks, for encouraging me to play.”

Conversation between the two of them wasn’t difficult since their Grom Tree talk - At least not normally. While it had been a bit different, and a bit more awkward at times, neither of them were overwhelmed to the point that they couldn’t speak to one another. In some ways, particularly for Amity, it had become easier. No secrets, after all. 

The only reason Luz was struggling slightly now was because of the thoughts in her own head that had begun to circulate. 

“And thank you, Boscha, for inviting Amity to actually play in the game in spite of barely talking to her for the past five months.” Boscha said aloud, sarcastically. “Thank you for giving these two something to do other than fawn over one another.”

Both Amity and Luz blushed at that. Luz quickly replied, “Thank you for twisting her arm on that front, Willow.” 

“What the - She had nothing to do with it! How fucking whipped do you think I am?!” 

“Well, that remains to be seen.” Willow answered, plainly, but a smirk on her face. Like she saw through the façade that Boscha was putting up - Getting confessed to in the way that she had, it wasn’t hard to spot that anymore. 

Knowing that, Boscha went red. A brief moment of silence passed. 

“... _Very._ ” Luz said, trying not to laugh. 

“Watch it, Human.” 

Everyone in the group, excluding Boscha, laughed openly at that point, though the three-eyed girl did allow herself to smile eventually. There was almost a shared trauma that the four of them had gone through, considering everything that had happened. Boscha wasn’t _exactly_ a friend or a part of their circle - Not yet, anyway. But having gone through Valeween together, it was hard to not feel that interacting with her was a bit easier. Plus, she was putting the effort in too. 

She was still very… Boscha-y, for lack of a better term, like Luz had thought she might be. But there was a new light-heartedness about it. Like it was more obvious that she was trying to just roll with the banter, and even partake in it. Just a week ago, that had been impossible to imagine. 

Not that she wasn’t still distinctly Boscha - She still had that confrontational attitude and personality that she had had before. But it was a notable change in how she had been before. It was difficult to describe, but it was easier to see when Boscha didn’t have malicious intent than it was before. 

Really, it was only a matter of time until everyone got comfortable enough around one another. 

Things were complicated. 

“On that note.” Willow said, once she managed to get herself to stop laughing. “Boscha, I need to talk to you again, if you don’t mind.” 

“Hm? Sure.” Boscha nodded, though one of her eyebrows was raised in curiosity. “What’s up?” 

Glancing towards the Witch and the Human, Willow gave a small, polite smile. “I was hoping me and her could talk alone? It’s uh…” She looked towards Luz, hoping that since she was there earlier when they last spoke, that she would get the implication of the subject. 

Thankfully, she did, and she nodded at her friend. “You want us to wait for you?” Luz asked. 

“We… Might be a while. You two should go on without us.” 

Luz and Amity both glanced at one another - It wasn’t like it was too far to Bonesborough from the school Grudgby Grounds, and once they got there, odds were good that they would have split off from Boscha and Willow anyway. So both of them shrugged and nodded. 

It wasn’t like it would be the first time they’d been alone since Valeween. It’d be fine. 

“Alright then. I’ll talk to you later tonight on my Scroll, okay?” Luz opened her arms up, and pulled Willow into a big see-you-later hug, which Willow had gotten more and more used to the longer the Human stayed on the Isles. 

Saying their various goodbyes, the two groups eventually separated, Amity and Luz making their way towards Bonesborough, and then to their respective homes, while Willow and Boscha remained where they were. As soon as Amity and Luz were out of earshot, and out of sight for good measure, both Willow and Boscha let out sighs. 

“...Seriously though. Thanks for inviting Amity to play.” Willow thanked the other Witch. “I think she needed that. I owe you one.” 

“Don’t mention it.” Boscha shrugged. “She helped us win. If anything, I kind of feel like I owe you a favour.” She turned towards the Plant Witch. “So, er… What’d you want to talk about?” 

“Oh, nothing.” Willow answered quickly. “I just thought that those two could use some time together.” 

“...Don’t they already spend a bunch of time together?” 

“I don’t think Luz knew about the Passover.” 

“...Oh.” Boscha blinked, and then turned her head back forward as it clicked into her head. “Ah. So, Amity didn’t ask her already?” 

“I guess not. But, you asked me, Luz was curious what we talked about, I explained it to her, and… Well. I guess we’ll see what happens next.” 

“You think something will happen?” 

“I hope so.” Willow nodded. “I think this has been bothering Luz a lot lately. She keeps zoning out, but every time I ask her, she says she doesn’t know what she feels towards Amity. Maybe something like this will give her a little push.” 

Maybe what Luz needed was something to push her outside the little bubble of a zone she had built around herself. Maybe she just needed a slight prod. Or maybe now that she knew about the Passover, maybe she would make the prod herself. Willow didn’t know - But It had turned out to be good luck that Boscha had asked her to the Passover when she did. She had already assumed that Amity had asked Luz and that that might have been a reason for her zoning out all the time. 

But maybe this was what they needed. 

If one of them was willing to ask the other, of course. 

“...Both of them are nuts about each other.” Boscha suddenly said, matter - of - factory, with such certainty that it almost made Willow look unsure in comparison. “They’ll figure it out.” 

Willow blinked at the declaration, but then found herself smiling. “You think so?” 

“It’s how they look at each other.” Boscha said, shrugging her shoulders. “Trust me.” 

“Why?” Willow asked, letting a small, smug smirk spread. “Do you see something of yourself in them?” 

Boscha averted her gaze. “...Yeah, well, you know why that is.” A brief pause followed. “...Are… Are you sure that you want to spend all of the Festivus around me?” She suddenly asked. “‘Cause, I’d get it if you weren’t comfortable with that, or, whatever.” 

“If I didn’t want to go, I’d tell you.” Willow assured the three-eyed girl. Her smug smirk melted into a smaller, but more genuine smile. “I’m sure about it.” 

The response let Boscha smile just a bit. “It’s just… I… I know that our history isn’t great. I - I’m trying, but, y’know… I’d get it if you weren’t comfortable.” 

“I know…” Willow nodded. She did know, and she appreciated the effort that Boscha had put in. Her efforts were clear, and while it was too early to say anything for certain… 

Willow recognised the effort when she saw it. Of course, the conditions of Boscha’s confession meant that she knew that the Grudgby Captain was serious from the beginning… 

But the effort now made it feel more real. 

She allowed herself to take a small side-step closer to Boscha, so that their arms gently brushed one another's - It was a small gesture, but it wasn’t one that Boscha didn’t notice. 

“...But I think I’m getting a bit more comfortable with you by the day.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY YA’LL IM NOT DEAD
> 
> Really sorry for not being good with the updates - I had to head home for the holidays because of COVID and I’ve had a ton of Uni projects that I had to prioritize because deadlines are coming up. I’ve not caught COVID (Yet. New COVID variation Anglo-Virus might get me yet) or lost motivation for this story - I’ve just had to prioritize what I have to do and I have to prioritize Uni work. Plus I’m working on other projects which ya’ll’ll learn about when this story ends - There’s a ton of stuff I’m working on so It’s just been a bit of a hit to how quick I get stuff out for this story but stuff will hopefully get back into the regular swing of things soon!
> 
> Also this chapter was super difficult to do for some reason - No idea why. I think because I did a timeskip. I know I focused a lot on Boschlow this chapter but this was more a setting up chapter I suppose. Need to get back into the flow of things. Next chapter will be a bit more reflective on what happened during the time skip so fear not. 
> 
> Thank ya’ll for being so patient with this story - You’re legit fantastic and the support you’ve all shown for Valeween is incredible. All I can ask is that you please be patient with me for a bit while I get everything sorted out - Thank you and I’ll see ya’ll next time.
> 
> Happy various holidays - And see ya!


	16. Comfortable Awkwardness

"So… How did it go?" Luz's hands shovelled into the pockets of her jacket, and she tilted her head slightly towards the Witch walking next to her. "You and Boscha haven't exactly talked much… In months, now that I think about it. Did anything happen?"

"Nothing happened." Amity assured her. "We just talked. It was…"

For a moment, Amity considered, replaying the encounter in her head, and comparing it to all the previous interactions that she had had with her former friend. Unquestioningly, it had been a vast improvement, that wasn't even up for debate. But still, that didn't mean that she fully knew how she felt about the whole affair, or what she thought about Boscha now.

"...Better than I expected." She said, eventually. "I… I think I'd need to speak to her more to really say one way or the other."

Just because she was undeniably better than she was in the past didn't mean Amity was convinced that she was suddenly a decent person. But it didn't mean she could, or was going to, dismiss the entire idea outright. Especially given the nature, and one of the causes of that change.

She and Boscha had both gone down almost the exact same route, just for different people, and had ended up at similar places. It would be hypocritical to not at least give her the opportunity now.

Or rather, let Willow give her the opportunity, since that was what it came down to at the end of the day.

"...What about her and Willow?" Luz asked, tentatively, her mind apparently in the same place. "D'you think those two are, y'know…"

"...That depends on Willow."

The terms 'Awkward' and 'Comfortable' were usually in direct contradiction to one another. They meant completely different things, and were extremely distinct feelings from one another. Luz had felt both of them plenty of times before, especially ever since arriving on the Boiling Isles, and hadn't thought that it was possible for anything to feel both comfortable and awkward at the same time.

But that was how it felt now, talking, and walking next to Amity, passing trees, and the occasional other person as they made their way down the path between Hexside and Bonesborough. A slightly awkward, but comfortable walk.

Really, it shouldn't have been comfortable in any way, and maybe comfortable wasn't the right word - It was difficult for Luz to describe. Given what she knew about Amity's feelings towards her though, there was a part of her brain that was telling her that she shouldn't be as relaxed and comfortable around her as she had been for the last week, or as comfortable as she was right now. Pretty much everything that she had grown up seeing, from books, to films, to how the people she went to school with back on Earth acted around people that even she could tell had crushes on one another, or knew someone else had a crush on them, told her that she shouldn't be comfortable in this situation.

But it didn't change the fact that she just… Was. She just was comfortable around Amity.

Maybe it was because it wasn't like the last time this had happened when people had done this for a prank, and she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Amity was telling the truth. Maybe she had finally gotten used to the idea of people even liking her as a person - If not necessarily in a romantic sense. Maybe it was how much she valued Amity's friendship, and how she knew that because of that, because of how close they were irrespective of all of this, she could trust Amity. She didn't know - But make sense or not, Luz simply was comfortable around her, even knowing what she did.

Both of them walked down the path from Hexside headed towards Bonesborough, down the same path that they would normally take whenever they left the school for the day. Given that for the last couple of weeks, the school had been closed to prepare for Valeween, and allow people to recover from the aftermath of it, walking down said path again was almost comforting in and of itself - Something familiar among a sea of uprooted routines and feelings. No matter how small it was, that little bit of familiarity did bring a feeling of comfort to the pair of them. One small bit of consistency in a sea of confusion.

Over the course of the past week, uprooted feelings were all that Luz had been dealing with, as she tried to figure out what her feelings were towards Amity. It had been practically the only thing that had been on her mind, and every other train of thought always returned to it. Amity's forced confession had forced the Human to reconsider practically everything that she had thought that she knew about their relationship, and she'd been doing that constantly.

Without really thinking about it, Luz glanced towards Amity from the corner of her eye as the two of them walked down the path together. Her eyes met with Amity's - She was also stealing a glance at the Human. They both paused for a second, and then looked away from one another, their faces feeling warmer than before.

Instances like this were where the awkwardness had come from. Lots of small things, like the way that Luz noticed Amity looked at her now, or the way she would act, or the things that she would say. Things like that which just a couple of weeks ago, Luz wouldn't have thought anything of. Now she understood them perfectly.

And yet Luz still never felt uncomfortable. Slightly embarrassed, sure, but never uncomfortable.

In fact, even that little interaction normally wouldn't have made Luz's face heat up just a few hours ago. It was the question that had risen in her mind while she spoke with Willow that made her react the way she had.

The question of if she was in love with Amity.

Both of them walked in silence for a couple of minutes, a bit too awkward to say anything to the other. They passed by a couple of Witches who were headed up to Hexside, for whatever reason. Once they were past, Luz found her voice, slightly quieter than normal. "Hey, er… Good job, with the Grudgby stuff. I know I said that already, but it was cool to see you playing again."

"O - Oh." Amity's cheeks went a bit redder, and Luz could see her ear twitch lightly at the compliment, though she didn't look towards the Human. "Thank you… And… Thanks for encouraging me to play, too. I… I had fun."

Luz smiled, happy that when Amity mentioned Boscha's offer earlier in the week, she had encouraged the Witch to go for it. It had been a change of pace that it was clear Amity had needed, if only to give her something else to focus on for a while. She was glad her friend had had fun.

"I'm glad." She said aloud, accompanied with a nod. Another pause followed, and then, another question did. "How are Emira and Edric doing?"

"Emira is fine." Amity answered more or less immediately. "So is Viney. She didn't say anything that hadn't already been said." A pause. "Apparently."

"Did you have any idea?"

"I didn't even know who Viney was until a week ago, nevermind that you knew her."

"I didn't even know they knew each other. Small Isles, I guess" Luz shrugged. The fact that Emira was with Viney throughout the entirety of Valeween at least explained why she hadn't been in Blight Manor at the time of the attack. And the revelation of their relationship had been… A surprise, to say the least. Still, Luz chose to stay on topic. "What about Edric?"

Amity paused slightly before she answered this time. "He's… Okay, I guess." Her face scrunched up, like she was trying to find the right words for what she wanted to say. She was less sure about her brother. "He's… I think he's taking a couple of the comments he got a bit hard, but aside from that I think he's okay."

Again, Luz nodded. Being in a group was safer, but it came with risks when it came to the Cherubim. Apparently Edric had been with a group of friends, and a few of them had gotten hit by their beams, and revealed that there were issues they had with Edric - What those were, Amity hadn't said, and Luz didn't think it was a good idea to ask. It wasn't her business anyway. But she understood how it most likely bothered the older Blight.

"He says he'll figure it out." Amity added on, sounding more certain about that. "He'll be fine. It'll just… Take a while."

Once more, Luz nodded.

A lot had happened, a lot had been revealed since Valeween, and it seemed like even a week later, everyone was still figuring out how to deal with all the fallout - Even people Luz knew had been directly affected while she wasn't there. Some were a lot more fortunate, like Emira and Viney were - Although the fact those two had been seeing one another for months and that absolutely no one had noticed had been quite the surprise to everyone. And apparently, that explained why Luz had seen her in one of the wounded tents during the event - and some who were less fortunate, like Edric, and the experiences he had had throughout the invasion.

Compared to them, Amity and Luz seemed to be caught in a weird middle ground, and were still figuring out what that meant to each of them. And where to go from there.

The reason that Luz had asked though hadn't been born out of concern for the Blight siblings - Though she was, of course, concerned about them. The primary reason that she had asked though was to fill the silence. Because after that glance at one another, and the thoughts bouncing around in the Humans head, the silence would have been a bit too awkward for her.

It should have been the first question thing that she considered - If her feelings for Amity ran that deep. Her feelings weren't just that of friendship - There was something more there, and she had said as much - But putting a name on it, or even figuring out where it was on the scale between friendship and romantic interest - That was hard. That was nearly impossible.

Maybe that was why Luz had just… Not even allowed that thought to seep into her mind.

Even if that… Really wasn't fair to Amity, now that she really thought about it.

But the issue was again, she didn't know - She didn't have anything else to compare it to. She'd never been the subject of someone's crush before. She'd never once been told that she was someone's crush before. She'd had - She'd had some crushes herself, but Amity was different. So was it that? Or was it something else?

Luz didn't know.

She did know though, that since the thought had snuck into her head - And for the thought sneaking into her head, she was absolutely going to blame Boscha and Willow, and the way they were acting towards one another - That when she looked at Amity, and Amity looked back at her?

Her face felt red and her heart felt tight.

It felt more like fear than it did anything else.

And that didn't make any sense. What was it that could be making her afraid? It couldn't be rejection - She knew how Amity felt about her.

So what the heck was even going on with her?

* * *

When the girls arrived in Bonesborough, Luz couldn't help but be reminded of the end-of-the-month street markets back on Earth. At least, in terms of the aesthetics that the town was going for.

With the usual Boiling Isles spin on it, naturally.

Stalls were being set up, scattered on either side of the streets to maximise space, and banners of various sorts were hung from buildings, walls, and magical streetlights. Some of them were brightly coloured, but more in theme with the Boiling Isles, many more were using darker colours like purple and turquoise, nearly half of them had eyes, and Luz could have sworn that half of those were alive.

One of them absolutely was.

"Prepare, one-and-all!" It yelled as it was laid out on the side of the pavement, as though it were a vendor itself. "For the Passover Festivus of the Valeween Menace has arrived! Prepare yourselves for an evening of celebration and - Ow!" It yelped as the vendor who owned it tossed other belongings on top of it, leaving its sentences muffled as the vendor began to set up their stall.

Luz winced slightly as she and Amity walked past it, but by now, she was used to all the many oddities that the Isles threw in front of her. A talking banner barely even registered as odd to her anymore.

This morning, there hadn't been any of this going on - When Luz had walked through Bonesborough to go to Hexside, it had seemed like everyone was going about their usual post-Valeween business - Staying as far away from those whom they now had awkward experiences with as possible, and just getting through the day. Now though, there were dozens of people on every corner, trying to get the town ready for the upcoming event, and there was a weird atmosphere that merged a feeling of anticipation with the tension that had hung over the Isles.

People were looking forward to the Passover Festivus. And Luz felt like she could understand why. After all of this, things on the Isles would begin to return to normal.

Or at least feel like they were normal.

"Oh, wow." Luz breathed as she and Amity passed by some of the banners being hung up - They were far more colourful than much of what she had seen on the Isles before. Like tapestries that were printed for flags. "Wow, those are cool." As simple as it sounded, that was really all Luz could say about them.

All the bright colours stood out against the darker tones that Bonesborough architecture was made from. It brought a feeling of vibrancy to the place. They were cool.

"They're traditional." Amity explained, scanning over a few of them herself. "The colours are supposed to help put people in a good mood."

"Does it work?"

"I think so."

As they walked, Luz took note of Amity's reaction to the new decorations that were being put up - And there was a smile on her lips as she observed and walked past the new decor.

Evidently, it was doing its job.

"You been to one of these before?" Luz asked.

"Just once." Amity's head fell slightly. "Last Valeween."

"Oh." Luz blinked, knowingly, remembering what amity had told her about her parents, and the experience she had had last Valeween - She was too young to remember her first Valeween, her second was a nightmare scenario, and her third and final one had just passed.

In hindsight, it had been a stupid question to ask.

"S - Sorry." She quickly tried to apologise. "I - I didn't mean to - "

"It's fine." Amity quickly assured her with a soft smile. "You don't need to tip-toe around that for my sake. Things are…"

A slight pause.

"...Things now are different from when I told you about that." Her cheeks reddened.

Luz's did too. She understood what Amity meant perfectly.

Turning away from Luz, Amity re-focused on the nearest colourful banner, trying to manage her blush. "A - Anyway, my parents were here doing… Something. I don't remember what it was exactly. I think they'd been asked here personally because of the contributions they'd made to keep themselves away from the defenders line, but I don't remember what they were here for exactly."

Somehow, Luz had a feeling that Amity hadn't felt the need to commit the reason to memory, for obvious reasons.

"They didn't really spend any time around me, so I just explored the Festivus and looked at what was happening."

"...What's the Festivus like?" The Human asked, choosing her words carefully, both curious about the celebration, and eager to steer the topic away from Amity's parents - Amity dealt with that topic enough as it was.

"It… Depends a lot on where you go." The Witch said, slowly. "It's split up into two different areas, and the smaller one is where people who have grievances go to… Deal with that."

Willow had mentioned that earlier, Luz noted. It was still weird to her that the Isles essentially had a 'Beat each other up to get it out of your system' corner of what was supposed to be a celebration… But then again, people on Earth couldn't set each other on fire with a flick of their wrists, so it made a degree of sense, she supposed. Better than the alternative.

"It's… Honestly kind of terrifying. Everyone looks like they want to kill each other. There's usually a bunch of Emperor's Coven there to make sure it doesn't get too out of hand, but, yeah. It's not pleasant around there."

"Yikes." Was all Luz could say in response. Then she blinked. "Wait, they let an eight year old in that part of the Festivus?"

"I'm… Almost certain that there was someone younger than me actually fighting by the time I got there."

Luz just blinked again, several times. "...Man, this place is wild sometimes."

Thankfully, no one that she knew had gotten affected in such a way the Cherubim Rays. So it wasn't like she was going to have to go to that side of the Festivus anyway. But it was interesting to note.

For some reason, her mind went back to those two guys she had seen fighting back when she and Boscha had been running to Willow's house to find them - Hegio and Letca, if she remembered right. She wondered if they would be there, doing… That entire thing. She wouldn't know though.

Frankly, she was glad that she wouldn't know.

"A - As for the other side…" Amity stammered out, her cheeks getting redder and redder. "That was - "

"Ms. Blight?" From just behind them, a polite, masculine voice addressed Amity directly.

Turning around to face the source of it, both Luz and Amity's eyes fell upon Beckham - The butler that Luz recognised had been trapped underneath that support beam when she arrived at the aflame Blight Manor on Valeween itself. Luz hadn't seen him once since then, and had only heard from Amity that he was apparently okay, but when Luz asked, Amity had said she hadn't seen him since either.

Meaning that this had the first time that the two of them had run into one another since. Amity's reaction was proof enough of that.

Around his forehead were a few bandages from an injury that apparently hadn't been bothered to be healed in favour of those with more serious injuries, and his clothing was far more casual than what Luz had seen him in last, sporting a typical Boiling Isles leather and cloth amalgamation, but his handsome face, his masculine voice, and even the way he simply addressed Amity made him unmistakable.

For just a moment, neither the butler, nor Amity moved, and just registered one another's presences. A moment where they just sort of stared at one another and didn't know what else they were supposed to do.

Amity broke the stalemate after that moment passed, quickly closing the gap between the two of them, and hugging Beckham as tightly as she was able to.

The act seemed to surprise Beckham for a few seconds, and his hands raised up just in front of his chest, like he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do with them. But after those seconds passed, he allowed himself to smile, and return the gesture.

Luz knew next to nothing about the relationship that these two shared - She barely even knew Beckham - But there was a certain kind of closeness present between the two that made the Human smile. One that Amity valued.

"...I haven't heard from you since Valeween." Amity said, as she ended the hug and let go of the man.

"...I heard that you had been hit by a Cherubim." Beckham said, nodding as she let go. "I wanted to check up on you, Ms. Blight, and make sure that you were okay, but I wasn't told where you were residing after what happened at the manor."

"My parents didn't tell you?" Amity asked, but she didn't sound surprised in the slightest. It would amaze her if her parents even remembered the faces of half the people they hired.

"Given my position, I was contacted, but only to inform me that my services would still be required upon the restoration of the manor." There was a formality in his voice that Luz couldn't help but feel was odd, given the clothes he wore. But it made a certain level of sense - Amity was the child of the people who employed him, after all. "It was a message sent on their behalf rather than by them themselves, I assume. Very few of us have heard from them since Valeween, I'm afraid."

"Yeah… That sounds like them." Amity nodded, her voice disturbingly neutral. "...I'm guessing that they'll be hiring people to have a proper investigation when they get back to figure out the cause of the fire."

A slight shiver ran down Amity's spine at that, that made the rest of her body shake slightly. Luz only noticed because she had all her attention on the conversation between the two. That was… Something that she hadn't actually considered.

Given that Amity was the cause of said fire… What her parents would do when they figured that out…

It made Luz take a step forward, with the intention of hugging Amity to try to comfort her.

"Those of us that were there realize that." Beckham agreed. As he spoke though, his now folded arms unfolded, and his hands rested themselves upon Amity's shoulders, gently. "And we've also agreed that they won't learn anything from us."

"What?" Amity's eyes widened. "Beckham, you can't be - If anyone figured out that you were there and didn't tell them everything that you know, you'd be arrested!"

"And had you not fought for all of us the way you did, there is a very good chance some of us could have died." Beckham responded, calmly. "There is a very good chance that I could have died."

"But you - "

"Ms. Blight." Beckham's voice became just that small bit firmer. "You had no real obligation to fight for us the way that you did. All of us were hired to serve the Blight family, and part of that would involve protecting you. And throughout the course of my employment, and throughout the course of everyone's employment, you've had no reason to treat us as kindly as you have either. And perhaps to you, that seems like common decency, but to us, it's a rarity. It's something that we're not used to in this line of work, and… Particularly within your family - But you made it a much more pleasant experience."

He smiled.

"None of us are willing those acts of kindness to be punished. So, please do not fight us on this, Ms. Blight. We have all already agreed on this."

It took a few seconds for Amity to react to that, and when she did react, it was to hug Beckham again.

A smile that Luz couldn't even begin to try to hide spread itself across her lips. For some reason, her mind went back to Valeween, how she and Amity had fought the Cherubim together, ended up trapped together, and the things that Amity had said to her while she was under the influence of the Cherubim's Beams. How she had said that she thought that she wasn't capable of changing from the person she saw herself as. And Luz wondered if that referred to how she treated the people her parents employed too.

Luz didn't know how Amity treated them before she arrived on the Isles - If Beckham statements were anything to go by, either she had changed in how she treated them, or she had always treated them with that level of respect - And that was something Luz didn't want her to change about herself.

The smile just grew.

But only for a few seconds.

Amity and Beckham spoke with one another, catching up and exchanging experiences and stories over what had happened since they had seen one another last, and as they did, Luz zoned out slightly, and looked around at the various decorations going up again. The decorations really were incredible, and the artist inside her could have admired them for hours. Her mind wandered, though.

In a couple of days, this Passover Festivus - This festival, in whatever form it would take, would arrive. And then everything on the Isles would return to a semblance of normalcy. And according to Willow, it was an informal tradition for those who gave a confession of love while affected by the Cherubim to ask those they confessed to to said festival. And Amity hadn't done that to Luz. And Luz felt like she knew why.

There was something… Overwhelmingly frustrating about that, that almost made Luz want to yell at something - She understood how Amity felt perfectly well, without any possibility of doubt, but didn't have a clue how she herself felt.

Or she just couldn't put a name on it. Or she was focusing on the wrong feelings. Or she was convincing herself something was there when there wasn't anything.

Or maybe she was trying to convince herself there was nothing there when something was.

Something big. But that was the problem.

She didn't know!

This wasn't how feelings were supposed to work - There was no possible way that what was happening to her could have happened on Earth! The more that Luz looked around, and saw the ways that the Witches of the Isles had built a system that worked for them, accounted for their circumstances and needs, even if it was just as difficult for them as it was for her, they at least seemed to understand it all better.

But she was a Human, and a Human who had lived on earth her entire life - She didn't know the first thing about any of this - But it was now what she was faced with figuring out!

Calling it frustrating was an understatement - Though if a better word for it existed, Luz didn't know what it would be.

Luz wanted answers to these feelings that she had, that she couldn't word properly, or really interpret. She wanted to know why this feeling was so impossible to describe, why it felt like this bizarre mix of fondness and fear. Why she hadn't been able to make any headway on figuring out what it meant in over a week. She wanted to be able to explain it to herself. She wanted to be able to explain it to Amity.

All of it was just a mess in her head, but…

She wanted to go to this Festivus.

Maybe her reasons and her logic didn't make any sense, if she even had any coherent reasons to begin with. She didn't know if it would help or not. She didn't even know what exactly to expect. But she wanted to go.

With Amity.

"...So her father made her quit the position." As Luz returned her attention back to Amity and Beckham's conversation, she caught the end of a situation that Beckham had been describing to Amity. "Ms. Bo's safety was far more important to him than his own well-being. Ms. Bo said that he opposed her working at the manor in the first place."

"It's understandable." Amity nodded, slowly. "But isn't he still sick with Ivory fever? How're they supposed to afford food if he's not well?"

"You needn't worry on that front, Ms. Blight. We're all going to make sure that Ms. Bo is looked after. That's why I'm here in the first place." Beckham explained. "Warren - My husband - He's with the Healing Coven, and he's seeing if there's anything that he can do to help, and me and the wife, Saoirse, we're here to acquire foodstuffs for them. And Mr. Elliot will be seeing to their needs tomorrow."

It looked like a weight had been lifted off Amity's shoulders to hear that. "I'm… I'm glad that all the staff look after one another."

"Of course. Ms. Bo performed her duties with grace and efficiency, and she was a joy to be around. It's only natural that we try to return that favour to her however we can."

"I'm sure she appreciates it."

"Did your parents not think it would be like… Super weird to hire someone you go to school with?" Luz stepped forward and asked - It was a question that she had actually been wondering about since she first learned that Bo had been under the Blight family's employ.

She was also slightly alarmed that such a hire wasn't illegal here but that was beside the point right now.

"I seriously doubt that they cared all that much." Amity answered, simply. "It probably didn't even cross their minds that it might make things more awkward for me at Hexside."

"I… Seriously hate your parents, Amity."

Amity had to actually suppress a single, half-bitter, half genuinely amused laugh at the bluntness of that statement.

"Begging your pardon," Beckham said suddenly, polite as ever, and reaching his hand out for Luz to shake, "I'm terribly sorry, I barely recognized you - You were the one who was with Ms. Blight at the manor, correct? It was such a hectic moment, I don't think I recall your name."

Accepting the handshake, Luz smiled. "I'm Luz! I'm one of Amity's…" A slight pause, as Luz considered what exactly their relationship even was right now. "...Friends."

That answer seemed to spark something in Beckham's eyes either way. Another, less polite, and more knowing smile spread across his lips. "Aaah! So you're the famous Human Ms. Blight speaks so highly of."

Luz's cheeks reddened. "Wait, she does what now?"

"Okay yep we're leaving right now." A now crimson -red Amity quickly said, grabbing hold of Luz's wrist and doing everything in her power to pull the Human away from the man. "Come on Luz we have places to be which are exactly anywhere that aren't here!"

"Wait, hold on Amity! What've you been saying about me to this - "

"It's been great seeing you Beckham but we have to go now, goodbye!" A flustered Amity said with a minimal wave of farewell, before pulling her crush as far away from the man who had heard more of her rambles about Luz from Amity than she was comfortable with anyone hearing - Which was exactly no one.

Amused and holding back a laugh, Beckham gave the two of them a gentle, but knowing wave. "I shall hope to see the pair of you again soon!" He called after, knowing exactly what words he was choosing as he bid them his own farewell.

And being the man of moderate faith he was, sent a small, humble prayer to the Titan that the young Witch's experience in the romance before her would end in her favour.

* * *

Even fluster-based silences between Luz and Amity at this point were this weird combination of comfortable and awkward.

Granted, Amity hadn't really stopped blushing since the two of them had split off from Beckham, but there was a sort of mutual understanding that she and Luz had wordlessly shared - Amity's feelings were in the open now, and Luz didn't make light of them, or tease Amity for them in any way. It didn't make it less embarrassing, but it did at least give Amity the sense of comfort to not just run as far away as possible from Luz while making up some extremely vague excuse.

When it became obvious that the subject embarrassed Amity way too much, Luz decided to not ask what, exactly, Beckham had meant. She could hazard a few guesses, but if Amity wasn't comfortable telling her, she wouldn't push it.

Amity was thankful for that.

As they walked through the town though, passing by more people setting up the various Festivus decorations, and got closer and closer to Amity's temporary house, Luz couldn't help but at the very least comment, "That Beckham guy seems nice."

For a second, Amity paused, like she was expecting a joke or a punchline of some sort. When none came, she relaxed, and nodded. "He is."

A quiet then fell between the two of them again, and Luz found herself lost in her thoughts, and within her internal contradictions once more.

She still had no answers.

The building that Amity and the other Blight siblings were staying in while the Construction Coven went about their work around Bonesborough before attending to Blight Manor, was on the outskirts of the town - A newer building, compared to the ones in the centre of the town. It was fairly large, easily making up at least three stories, but it's exterior wasn't even anything coming close to the sheer levels of complexity that Blight Manor had had. Mostly it was just plain stone, with extremely utilitarian architecture. What exactly the Blight Family got out of owning a place like this under normal circumstances was honestly a mystery, but right now, neither Amity nor Luz questioned it. It was a place to stay, and right now, that was the only thing that mattered.

Both girls stood there for a moment, silently acknowledging that this was where they would part ways for today, but not making a step to separate yet.

"Do… Do you want to come in and see Emira and Edric?" Amity asked, slightly awkwardly. "You haven't seen them in a while. They um… Asked about you yesterday. They heard you were injured."

"I'd like to, but… I promised Eda I'd run some errands for her when the Grudgby game was finished." Luz said, shrugging her shoulders, so the potion bottles within her bag hit one another to indicate their presence. "I should probably get on with that before it gets dark."

"Right, right…"

A few seconds passed. And in those few seconds, Luz's mind wandered again.

Was Amity going to ask?

"...Thanks, Luz." Amity said, quietly. "For showing up for the game today. And for convincing me to actually play…" A slight pause. "...And for walking me back here."

"N - No problem." Luz answered, quickly pulling herself back. "It was - It was fun to watch. I'm - I'm glad you had fun."

"It was… A good change of pace."

Luz nodded. Both of them looked up at Amity's temporary home for a few moments, before Amity let out a small sigh, though Luz couldn't tell if it was from exhaustion, or from something else.

"...I'll let you know when I get back to the Owl House, okay?" Luz promised, giving her friend a small smile.

Amity nodded back, gently. "Right."

With that, she began to walk towards the front door, and Luz couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment herself. Wasn't Amity going to ask her about the Festivus?

It was a weird feeling, being caught between the confusion of not knowing what she felt, but also knowing that she wanted to go to this festival with Amity, regardless of what the implications of that may or may not be. It felt like two different gangs of butterflies were fighting one another inside her stomach. Like she had drunk spoiled milk, and decided the best solution for a lactose-intolerant would be to drink half a bottle of soda. Only she didn't feel sick.

If for no other reason, she wanted to figure this all out so her own internal dialogue would start making some kind of sense.

A small sigh escaped her, and she turned around, and took a few steps away from the building.

And then she stopped.

What was it that she had thought in the past? Back when she first saw Willow with Boscha after Valeween?

That traditions were dumb anyway. Formal or informal. Traditions changed. They died. They became something else if left alone for enough time. They didn't remain the same over time. And Luz had broken plenty of traditions in her life, both back on Earth, and on the Isles.

So why in the world was she going along with this one?

Why didn't she just ask Amity to the Festivus?

What in the world was stopping her from doing that?

In her head, she quickly came to the conclusion that her contradictory feelings had stopped her from seeing basic sense, but shook her head - She could dwell more about that later on if she wanted to. Instead, she took a deep breath, and turned around.

"Amity - "

"Luz - "

" - Do you wanna go to the Festivus together?"

" - Will you go to the Passover with me?"

"Huh?"

"What?"

Both had turned around at the same moment, and spoken with both conviction and speed that they hadn't realised the other had done the same until they had finished.

When they both registered what had happened, they both just froze for a few seconds, trying to make sure that they had heard the other person correctly. Once it fully registered, both of them felt a blush spreading across their cheeks.

"S - Sorry!" Of the two of them, Luz was the one who ended up breaking the silence first, and suddenly feeling like she was being hit by a wave of awkwardness. "I just - I didn't - I know it's supposed to be a - A… Thing that… People who get hit by Cherubim are supposed to do but I - I didn't know if you wanted to ask or if you didn't feel like even going to the Festivus a - and I didn't even know that this was a thing until like, a couple of hours ago, I - "

"I - I didn't think you'd want to go." Amity said, a lot quieter, but it was enough for Luz to stop her rambling. Her eyes darted to the side, trying to avoid looking at Luz's directly. "I… I didn't want to put you in a situation that you weren't comfortable with. This... " Her hands joined, and her fingers began to prod and poke at one another. "...I know this whole mess is… Awkward."

"Y… Yeah." That was… An understatement, to be sure.

"But…" She looked back at Luz.

There was an awkward, wavering smile on her now red face.

"...I… I do want to go with you."

Luz felt herself gulp. That… Was that then. They didn't really need to exchange any more words.

They would go together.

"..Why do you want to go, though?"

That made Luz blink. "Huh?"

"I - I'm just…. Surprised." The Witch explained. "I thought that you might have been uncomfortable going with me, given… Everything."

For a moment, Luz thought about the best way to put it. Her eyes diverted in the same way Amity's had just a few seconds ago. The words came to her slowly.

"...I want to know how I feel about you." She eventually said, carefully. To be honest, she didn't fully understand herself. "And I… Don't know how to explain it… But this feels important to me…"

She made her eyes return to look at Amity, even though they wanted to look away in fluster.

"...Because it feels important to you."

* * *

Quickly, and fairly quietly, Luz went about Bonesborough, dropping off the packages for Eda that she had promised to do. She barely spoke a word to anyone who she delivered to. Her mind was full of thoughts and her chest was full of anticipation.

The Festivus was the day after tomorrow. And it was already getting fairly late as she went about her deliveries. So that translated to basically having one day to actually… Figure out what she was supposed to do for this thing.

Was she supposed to wear something in particular? What was she going to find when she got there? What would she feel when she was there?

What did she even feel now? Did she expect that going to this festival would just… Make everything make sense to her? She couldn't even properly explain why it was important to her to go. Why she wanted to go with Amity.

It wasn't that she felt some sort of obligation to Amity - Not in that way, at least. Amity had stressed that point more times than Luz could count, and even if she hadn't, doing that to Amity wouldn't be fair. It wouldn't be right. She wanted to make sure her feelings - Whatever they were - Were genuine.

Difficult when she didn't know what they were.

With the last package delivered, Luz let out a sigh, and looked around her. More decorations. More stalls. After tomorrow, the streets would be alive, with all manner of people, all facing similar problems to her. But she knew they would be more like Willow - Facing a problem that they struggled with emotionally and mentally, but knowing how to proceed. Having an idea of how to proceed. Knowing what was in front of them.

Simultaneously, Luz was both looking forward to it, and was dreading it. The butterflies in her stomach stirred up again.

Whatever these feelings were, they were contradictory. Circulatory. And Luz wasn't sure how much more of it she would be able to take.

She needed to figure out what she felt.

Quickly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo, everyone! It's been a bit since I updated this fic huh? Apologies for that, my Uni workbook up a lot more time than I thought it did and it stressed me out a fair bit, so I took a bit of a break, played through the entire Wolfenstein Trilogy (We don't talk about Youngblood, stop asking), and just chilled out a bit. And now, I'm back, hopefully to wrap this story up soon!
> 
> The last couple of chapters have been tricky, and I do worry this chapter feels a bit samey, especially with Luz's confusion, but I hope that with the next chapter, you'll see why this one was necessary - Feedback I've gotten from the friends I've shared my plans with has been pretty positive, so I'm looking forward to getting that one out!
> 
> For those of you who might be a bit confused regarding Beckham's family- He's a pansexual man who is in a polyamorous relationship, where all three members are married to one another. I didn't just forget I gave him a Husband and a Wife in the exact same sentence twice now, this is a very deliberate choice. People seem to really like Beckham, which amuses me to no end, so, there you go - Some nice lore about him for ya'll.
> 
> Also wanna thank everyone for their feedback on the "Passover" name from last chapter - I got a lot of responses, and as you can see, I've changed it to the Passover Festivus, and if you go back to the last chapter (as of the 21st of January, for future readers) I've changed the chapter around slightly to accommodate the new name of the Festivus. I kind of forgot Passover was an actual holiday - Woops.
> 
> Also, once again - And this time with genuine hatred - Fuck MAGA's.
> 
> Hopefully the next chapter will come out sooner than the wait between this chapter and the last - BUT I hope that you all enjoyed! And I'll see you next time! See ya!


	17. A Mistake

A little bit over a week ago, Luz had walked up the path to the Owl House under the dark of night, using a Light Spell to see her way, surrounded by once vibrantly coloured leaves turned to charcoal-black, turning it into an eerie, almost cold environment. There hadn’t even been any wind, any rustling of leaves, or anything along those lines.

That had been the day that she had first learned about Valeween. 

Back then, it had been easy to think of everything that surrounded it as something of an exaggeration. That everyone was overreacting to whatever was coming. Luz had barely had a full comprehension of what it meant, even though Willow had explained the event to her in a fairly straightforward manner. Knowing what would happen, and experiencing it - These were two extremely different things, to the point that Luz wasn’t even sure if she could claim to have had any idea what Valeween really was back then. It was the difference between knowing what happened when a doctor had to reset a broken arm, and having your own arm reset. 

Walking up the path in the dark again - A small, Magical ball of light hovering between her hands again, but this time, the plants back in their normal vibrant colours, the sounds of leaves and grass brushing against one another filling the air, and this time it was later in the night that she was heading back up the path - reminded Luz of that day. 

It made her reflect, though -So much had changed since then. Back then, she didn’t know what to expect, and her mind had been filled to the brim of question after question, and the desire to see them answered, to put her curiosity to rest. So many of those questions had been answered since then, but now there were other, much larger ones that had been asked in their place. 

The way that Amity had acted around her - How Amity had always acted around her... Being one of the biggest questions answered. But now, what she felt towards Amity replaced it. One question answered, another one asked, this one far, far harder to answer. 

Sometimes, Luz had to wonder if everyone else’s lives were as complicated as hers, or if the universe just liked to mess with her specifically. 

As she made her way down the path, she paused for a second, at a low hanging branch. It was the same one that she had torn a turned charcoal-black leaf from a week and a half ago, and found the leaf indestructible, reinforced by the Magic that the Cherubim had exerted, to watch the Witches of the Isles, to open the portal from their realm into the Isles, and to help them in their hunts. Perhaps out of paranoia, Luz reached out, and tore another leaf from the branch, and tried to crumple it, just to see if there were any lingering signs of Cherubim within it. 

This time, it bent and broke without resistance at all. Just like a regular leaf normally did. A small breath that Luz didn’t realize that she had been holding escaped her, and she continued on. 

After a short while, Luz found herself in front of the Owl House again. Since the invasion had passed, the fortifications that they had put up around the place had been taken down, leaving the exterior of the house open, free and uncluttered again. The Human made her way to the front door, opened it carefully so she didn’t wake up the already asleep Hooty, closed it behind her, leaned against it, and then sighed. 

Today had been… An emotionally exhausting day, just like every other day had been for the last week now. It was starting to become something that Luz was used to, though that didn’t ever make her feel less tired. She’d never been an academically inclined person, but the idea of studying for a thousand tests felt less daunting than this. Less exhausting, too. 

Tilting her head up to look around the living room, her eyes fell on the couch - Lilith and King both sleeping. Lilith had fallen asleep lengthways on the couch, and at some point, Eda probably put a blanket over her. King had fallen asleep next to her. Seeing that made Luz smile, and quietly made her way past the pair of them, tip-toeing upstairs, and trying not to wake them up. 

“That you, Luz?” Once at the top of the steps, Eda’s voice came from behind the slightly ajar door to her room. She spoke a bit quieter than usual, so as not to wake the three other members of the household. 

“Yep.” Luz answered, voice adjusted for the same reason. “Sorry for taking so long, I was with Amity for a while.” 

“Don’t worry about it, kid. You get those packages delivered?” 

“Uh - huh.” Reaching into her bag, Luz produced a large pouch, about half the size of the bag in and of itself. As she pulled it out, the inside contents jingled. ”I’ve got the money here. Do you want me to bring it in there, or are you not decent?” 

“I’m fine, bring it in. I’ve got something I could use your eye on, actually.” 

Pushing the door open with her free hand, Luz entered the room - Eda was on the other side of it, and on the corner of her nest, there were a series of actually really nice clothes - Dresses, suits, jackets, pretty much any type of formal wear hat Luz could recognise, and others that she was fairly sure were unique to the Boiling Isles.

They seemed to be separated into groups - One pile having roughly ten outfits, and the other ‘pile’ having just one. Eda herself was holding two others, and was looking at one of them in front of a mirror. She paused for a second, before throwing a formal dress-suit hybrid into the larger pile. 

Evidentially, she was picking something out for the Festivus. 

Things with Yeven were clearly going well. 

“I didn’t even know you owned this many nice clothes.” Luz said, flatly, and surprised, dropping the bag of money on the bed. For the longest time, she had thought that the only ‘formal wear’ she owned was one of her old high school dresses, and the suit she wore for Grom months ago.

“I don’t exactly go out to a lot of nice things.” Eda reminded her, a smirk on her face. “Can’t imagine why I don’t get invited anywhere. Anyway. -” She turned around, and picked up the article of clothing from the pile-of-one, shook some of the twigs that had gotten caught on it from her nest, and then held the two up next to one another. “ - Which d’you think?” 

Of the two options, one was a sort of dark red suit that had a series of interconnecting sequins along the arms and the waistline - It was a Boiling Isles article of clothing, one that back on Earth, Luz wouldn’t be able to properly describe. It was like a suit and a waist jacket tied into one. The second option was a dress - A black-and-grey feathery one - Like the one that had belonged to Eda years ago. Like the one she had offered to let Luz wear for Grom if she had wanted. 

“The dress.” Luz said, without even a second's hesitation. It wasn’t even a choice as far as she was concerned. 

Eda looked at the dress, and then back at Luz. “You’re sure?” 

“It’ll be like you’re back in Hexside again - I’ll bet you anything Yeven will love it.” The Human smirked. 

Luz could count the number of times she’d seen Eda actually blush on one hand up until this point. Now, she was going to need two hands to do it. 

“...Well, that’s that then.” Eda nodded, throwing the suit onto what Luz figured was the ‘discarded’ pile of clothes. She held the dress in front of her, and looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes squinted, and she muttered, “Twenty years later, and I’m gonna be wearing close enough the exact same sort of thing I did back then… You’re certain that’s not too on the nose?” 

“Yeah, I’m sure.” Luz couldn’t stop the smirk on her face from spreading. “It’s weird seeing you this nervous, Eda.” 

“This coming from you, of _all people_ , kid?” 

Both parties laughed, good naturedly. Between the two of them and their similar situations, and their normal dynamic, it was difficult not to at least laugh about it together. 

“...How did it go today, anyway?” Once her laugh subsided, Eda asked, her tone far more serious and sincere. “Did something happen? You look tired.” 

Honestly, at this point, Luz would be more surprised when she didn’t look or feel like she was tired. For a second, she hesitated to answer, out of habit more than anything. “Well, er… Willow told me about the Passover Festivus.” 

“...Did I not?” 

“Er… No.” 

“...Damn.” Eda blinked, her shoulders slumping slightly. “First I forgot to tell you about Valeween, and now I forgot the Festivus. I’m two for two on that front, huh. Sorry.”

Another smile. It was weird - For Valeween, Eda had said that the reason she had forgotten to even explain anything to her had come down to the fact that Luz was now such a prominent part in her life, and had adapted so well, that it was like she had always been there, and the Festivus was apparently more of the same. In an odd way, it made Luz feel happy to know that that was why Eda forgot. It made her feel more accepted. Like she truly belonged here.

“It’s fine.” Luz assured her. If there was ever one reason that she was happy to not be informed about something, it was the fact that people were so used to her being around that they forgot she wasn’t even from here. 

“...So?” An eyebrow raised above Eda’s right eye. “If you even didn’t know what the Festivus was until today, I’m gonna guess green-top hadn’t asked. Have they asked today?” 

“...We… Sort of asked each other.” Luz admitted after a brief silence. “We’re er, we’re gonna go together.” 

Eda smirked, her golden fang showing. “About damn time something happened there.” As she spoke, she began to clear up all the clothes she had left thrown on the side of her nest. “So, you figured out the whole ‘How you feel’ thing yet, then?”

To that, Luz just shook her head. “I just… I want to go to the Festivus with her. But I don’t… _Know_ , yet.” 

For some reason, saying that felt less accurate now. 

This time, Eda didn’t say anything, but she nodded her head in understanding, and began to pack all the clothes away. After a few seconds, as she was hanging up the clothes, she glanced over her shoulder, “Anything I can do to help?”

“I… I don’t think so. I think I’ll be okay.” In all honesty, Luz didn’t know if there was anything that Eda could do to help. So much of this was her own internal strife and convoluted feelings that she struggled to think of a way that anyone could help her. She smiled though. “Thanks anyway, Eda.” 

“Alright.” Eda nodded again. She turned around, to grab a few more clothes to hang up. “You know the drill - Food’s in stasis for you, if you wanna grab that whenever you’re ready.” Another wry smirk. “Be nice if you actually showed up for dinner once in a while though. I might have to give Lilith your seat before much longer.” 

“I’ll make a note of it.” Luz smiled, and began to leave the room. Her hand grabbed hold of the door handle. “Night, Eda.” 

“Night, kiddo. Try not to wake those two downstairs, alright?” 

“Right.” Luz said, slowly shutting the door, to make sure it didn’t creak. Once shut, she let out a small sigh, and made her way back downstairs. 

Tip-toeing around Lilith and King again, she found where her food had been left for her, used her Magic to bring it out of stasis, tip-toed past Lilith and King a third time, made her way back upstairs, and finally, to her room. Once again, she sighed, put the food on her desk, sat down, and took a bite of her meal. It was good, actually. 

She retrieved her Scroll from her pocket, and opened it up - She had promised that she would let Amity know when she had gotten back to the Owl House, and now, she had a moment to herself. 

Once she opened it up though, she noticed that on the home screen, she had a notification telling her that Willow had messaged her, at least four separate times. Her eyebrow raised, and she would quickly check those - Once she let Amity know she was fine. 

It was a very simple, quick message. _‘Hey, Amity, I’m at the Owl House now. I got back okay.’_ She hit send, and it was away. Then, she tapped the notifications that Willow had sent her, and scrolled through those. 

The earliest one had been sent on it’s own, and the other three had been sent in rapid succession, a couple of hours after the first one. The first one was a photo, not of Willow, but of Boscha - In it, Boscha was holding up the single most feminine dress Luz had ever seen in her life. It was an almost absurdly pink, sparkling, and frilly dress that looked like it belonged at a combination formal-party-disco-rave. Boscha was holding it in front of her, for the camera, so it looked like she was wearing it. 

Luz had _never_ seen Boscha look so embarrassed before - It was hard not to laugh. Clearly, Willow had been the one to push Boscha for a photo like this, because there was no way Boscha would ever willingly even touch something like that. The contrast between the dress, and the way Boscha acted was hilarious. She had handled her forced confession to Willow with more grace than she was showing here.

Whatever their relationship ended up being, the fact Boscha was willing to entertain this for Willows sake was a sort of proof that they were on the mend. 

Two photos and a text message came afterwards - The images being this time of Willow, comparing two different dresses to one another. On one of them, there was a finger on the screen, coming off from the side, from the person who was holding the Scroll to take the photo - It looked like it belonged to Gus, so it looked like that was where Willow had gone after she and Boscha had split off from each other. 

_‘Which one do you think looks better? - It’s for the Festivus!”’_ The text message read. Luz blinked, wondering why the heck everyone seemed to be asking her for fashion advice today. The choices were between the same dress that the Plant Witch had worn to Grom, and another, dark blue one, that had a single flower pattern that was worn above where the heart would be. It went with Willow’s hair. 

_‘The blue one.’_ Luz typed a reply, and then put her Scroll down, to eat her food before it went cold. As she chewed, she allowed her thoughts to wander a little, and as they did, her eyes fell on her phone. 

In all the hectic busyness that had surrounded Valeween and everything that came after, and all the thought consuming feelings that had been eating away at Luz for the last week now, she hadn’t even thought about Earth. Not even briefly. It made her feel guilty, and made her wonder how her mother was doing back there. 

Reaching out, she picked up her phone, and looked at the device, though she didn’t turn it on. In the reflection of her turned-off screen she could see herself - Eda hadn’t been wrong. She looked absolutely exhausted. She put the phone down, and took another bite from her food. 

She wanted to be able to go back to Earth, to let her mother know that she was alright. To tell her all about the Boiling Isles. To show her what this place was like, and the Magic she could do now. To tell her about the friends that she had made. 

To tell her about Amity. 

And… Hope that she would have some idea about what to do right now. Some advice or… Something. Maybe it wouldn’t be more useful, or more in depth, or clear anything up for her more than anyone else’s so far, but… It would be a comfort, if nothing else. Even when Luz hadn’t known what to do, and when her mother hadn’t known what to do either, when her mother tried to help, there was a feeling of comfort there. She missed that, sometimes. 

Once all of this was over, she was going to go back to trying to find a way back to Earth. She hadn’t just abandoned that plan. But for now, she had to figure this all out herself. 

Another bite, and her Scroll lit up. The notification informed the Human that it was a message from Amity. Quickly, Luz tapped on the device to open the message. 

_‘Thank you for letting me know, Luz.’_ Extremely formal. A smile prepared on Luz’s lips. Amity always wrote messages in a formal manner. She had gotten used to it by now. _‘I just wanted to make sure - Are you positive you’re comfortable going to the Festivus together? I just don’t want to be the cause of you being uncomfortable in any way.’_

The formality didn’t hide the fact that Amity was obviously nervous, and Luz could imagine the Witch hesitating before hitting the send button. It just made her smile more. It was sweet of her to be this concerned. And Luz knew the source of that concern… 

Which was a weird, but… Really warm feeling.

 _‘It’s totally fine, Amity!’_ She responded, typing it out as quickly as her thumbs would let her. _‘I want to go with you. I’m looking forward to it!’_ She hit send, and the message was away. 

Luz hadn’t lied a bit, either. She had meant every word of that. She did want to go with her, and she was looking forward to it. 

Even with these feelings uncertain as they were. 

More mouthfuls of food later, and Luz’s plate was clean. She leaned back in her seat for a moment, and just stared at the ceiling, with no real purpose or thought whatsoever. 

Sometimes, being here didn’t feel real. Like it was all some sort of massive hallucination, or maybe the bus to Summer Camp had crashed, and she was in a coma or something. She would have to bite the inside of her lip occasionally to remind her that all of this - All the wonders of this Realm, all the Magic she had seen and done, and all the people she had met - All the weird, wonderful friends that she had made here - That they were all real. That this was all real. 

That these feelings were real. Both the ones directed to her, and the ones that she felt herself. Even if she didn’t know what they meant, they _were real._

This was all real. 

The day after tomorrow, she would be going to a festival with Amity. And she knew Amity was… In love with her. 

It was real. Even if sometimes, Luz was certain that it couldn’t be. 

Her mind wandered for a moment, until she blinked. She then reached for her Scroll, and opened the chat box with Willow. 

‘ _Hey, Willow - I think I might need your help with something, if you’ve got time tomorrow.’_

* * *

“Yknow, what? I’m gonna be honest - This is the absolute _literal_ last thing that I thought I’d be doing today.” 

“...Didn’t you do this yesterday?” Gus’s eyebrow raised, and he didn’t bother to hide the smirk. “We all saw the pictures.” 

“ _Willow_ dragged me out there!” Boscha defended, firmly, and while trying her hardest to not go red-in-the-face. “A - And if I’d known she was gonna send those pictures to you two, I wouldn’t have gone.” 

“You would have gone anywhere if it meant Willow was happy.” Luz said, a smirk of her own showing up. “We’ve all seen how you act with her these days.” 

“Human, I swear to the Titan -“ 

“Okay! Luz, I found these” Emerging from around one of the many convoluted twists and fabric-draped turns of the store, Willow returned to the group, four separate, more feminine articles of clothing in hand. As soon as she showed up, Boscha stopped speaking, and instead turned to pick up one of the articles from Willow, and held it open so Luz and Gus could see it. “Did anything here work?” 

“I liked the waistcoat.” Luz said, gesturing at a purple-and-grey waistcoat that sat atop a pile of other tried-on clothes. “I just need something for it to go with now.” 

From what Luz had been told, and from what she had been able to put together on her own, the Festivus was a sort of formal-informal hybrid type of event. From what few outfits she had seen, there was variety - Some people were going in formal attire, while others were going in a more casual manner. What the metric was for that, and what informed their choice of clothing, Luz couldn’t know. 

What she did know though, was that she didn’t have anything to wear for the Festivus. There was her Grom outfit, but that felt… Lazy, almost. It just didn’t seem right to wear that to the Festivus again. If there was anything that she didn’t want to do, it was to come across like she wasn’t taking Amity’s feelings seriously. Maybe that only made sense to her, but it mattered a lot either way. She needed something new. 

That was why she asked Willow if she was willing to help her find an outfit for the Festivus last night. Willow of course agreed, and had gotten hold of Gus to see if he was available - His Illusion Magic would save the Human a massive amount of time. 

The reason that Boscha had been asked to come along by Willow and by Luz had been for the sake of an unbiased perspective - Gus had next to no fashion sense, Luz was the one who wanted the perspectives of others, and while Willow probably had the best fashion sense of the three of them, Luz easily knew she was far, far too nice to actually be blunt about her perspective. Boscha on the other hand wouldn’t hesitate. So, here she was. 

It was an… Odd feeling, voluntarily spending… Any time around Boscha, Luz felt. But Willow seemed comfortable around her, and she was giving her honest opinion, which Luz had wanted, so she couldn’t complain. 

Gus looked at the clothing that Boscha held up - A frilly, green dress, with black sleeves. With a spin of his fingers, he cast an Illusion Spell on Luz, so that it looked like the girl was now wearing it, along with the waistcoat that she had approved of on top of it. 

“...Yeah, no.” Luz said, flatly. Not only did it not feel right, looking at it in the mirror, it looked nothing short of a contradictory mess. With the waistcoat, it simply didn’t work. 

“Definitely not.” Boscha agreed. Both Gus and Willow also vocalised their disapproval, and with the flick of Gus’s wrist, the Illusion was broken. 

This process repeated itself quickly as they went down the pile of clothes that Willow had sought out, though approval and disapproval varied from article to article. When the pile of clothes had been gone through, the group would seek out other clothes throughout the store they were in, to see if there was anything that would suit Luz. Sometimes Willow would go on her own, and sometimes Gus or Boscha would go along with her, to see if their tastes would lead to something that worked well. They then brought them back to her, Gus would do his Magic, and the process would begin over again.

Given what all of this was for, Luz found herself being a whole lot more particular with the style of clothing that she was going to accept than she normally would be - And a part of her knew that she was being difficult and pedantic, but she couldn’t help it. This mattered to her. A lot.

And she was glad that she had friends who were willing to help her with this. 

After a few cycles of clothing options being rejected though, Willow and Gus went off, hunting for anything that might go well with the waistcoat. Once out of sight, Luz just allowed herself to sigh, and lean back against the nearest wall. Her own eye for fashion had never been exactly great, and nor had her patience for this sort of clothes shopping, either. There had been next to nothing more boring back on Earth. Again, the only reason she was putting in so much effort now was because of Amity. 

Though, she would admit, a part of her wondered if she could get away with just putting the waistcoat over her suit back at the Owl House, and seeing if that would work. 

“So.” Boscha said suddenly, pulling Luz’s attention away from her thoughts. The three-eyed girl was leaning against a wall, just like Luz was, though her Scroll was now in hand. “You and Amity, huh? How’s that going?” 

Luz blinked a couple of times, before she raised an eyebrow. Without really thinking about it, she deflected the question. “...How’s things with you and Willow going?” 

Boscha paused for a second, and glanced out over the store floor. She must have caught sight of Willow, because after a moment, she stopped her scanning, and just kept her focus on one particular spot. She then smiled, before she returned back to face the Human. 

“...Better than I could have imagined it would.” She answered, evidentially very honestly. There was a deep fondness in the way she spoke that Luz couldn’t help but feel she hadn’t ever seen in Boscha before. She then let her face fall back into its usual scowl, though. “You didn’t answer me though.”

Again, Luz just blinked. “...It’s, uh… It’s going okay, I guess.” 

For all the progress that Boscha had made, Luz wasn’t certain just how comfortable she was talking about this with her. It wasn’t even so much the fact that their history hadn’t exactly been pleasant, or that Luz didn’t trust her - They had fought alongside one another on Valeween. That had been pretty conducive to at least helping to ease that prior tension. It was more down to the fact that she barely even knew how to talk about it with Willow or Gus or Eda or Amity herself, never mind Boscha. She didn’t even know entirely what to say at the best of times. 

What was she supposed to say to _Boscha,_ of all people _?_

“You’re worried.” Boscha then stated. It wasn’t a question, or a judgement - The way she said it, it was more like an objective observation that she was pointing out. 

“O… Of course I am.” Luz nodded, plainly. “Isn’t that normal?” 

“Why?” 

“What -” Luz blinked, and felt her face turn into an incredulous scowl. “What do you mean, _‘Why?’”_ Was that not _painfully_ obvious?

“You know how Amity feels about you.” Boscha pointed out, pushing herself up from leaning against the wall. Her hands shovelled into her pockets once she stood upright. “You know exactly how she feels. It’s not like you have to worry about being rejected if you’re planning on telling her you like her.” 

“It… I don’t know how I feel. That’s… Thats the problem.” 

“And that's why you’re bothering with all of this clothes shopping?” An eyebrow raised over Boscha’s left eye. 

“I can’t just - I don’t want her to think I’m not taking her seriously!”

“Bullshit.” 

All Luz could do was blink, before Boscha spoke again. 

“I’ve known Amity a lot longer than you have, Human -” 

All three of Boscha’s eyes fell onto Luz - And maybe it was the fact it was three eyes and not two, but it made the Human feel incredibly… Exposed, for lack of a better word. 

“- Do you _honestly think_ that Amity would care if you showed up in your Grom outfit or not?” A pause. “Better question - Do you think she’d care if you showed up wearing what you’ve got on _now?”_

The question didn’t really need answering. It was almost self evident -

Amity wouldn’t care. She wasn’t that vain, or interested in stuff like that - Hell, half the time that Luz ever saw her out of school, her clothes are as simplistic as it got. It wasn’t like she was going to be disappointed with the outfit Luz ended up wearing - She was out here because it felt like it made sense to her. 

Boscha didn’t wait for an answer. “So, this is more for your sake than anything else. Which is fine, but that tells me that you’re bothered about this - I’m asking you why it’s bothering you so much if you know how she feels about you.” 

“I - I don’t -” 

“You know _exactly_ how you feel about her, don’t you.” Again, it wasn’t a question. It was stated as though it were a fact. “I’ve put up with this for the past week, just barely get on with either of you, and even I know that you’re as into her as she is into you. You asked her to the Festivus, and she asked you. Maybe you didn’t know back on Valeween, but you do now.” 

Luz’s mouth opened, to say… Something. But no noise came out. 

“I can get not saying anything to me.” Boscha said, flatly. “That goes without saying. And not saying anything to Gus, yeah, I wouldn’t trust him to keep a secret either. But you’re keeping this up around _Willow?”_

 _“It’s not a bit!”_ This time, Luz almost shouted, but she forced herself to keep her voice down. Was Boscha accusing her of lying - What else could she _possibly mean_ , if not that? “I don’t - I can’t tell how I feel! Amity is incredible! She’s such a fun and cool person to be around - Of course I like her! But that’s not - “ 

She bit down on her lip, and paused. 

“... I - It doesn’t make any _sense_ . Amity is like, this… Everything she does, she does well. She always tries her hardest. But she’s not willing to just… Throw people aside anymore. Not like she used to. I admire all of that, but… That doesn’t mean I… I _like her like her_.” 

Her eyes looked down towards the ground. 

“I… I don’t know why she likes me the way she does. I don’t… I don’t get it. I don’t know what she even sees in me. But there’s… There… Something there, and I don’t know what! It’s not a bit, Boscha - _I don’t know!”_

“...You think she made a mistake.” 

Silence. 

A pause. 

And all Luz did was blink.

“...W… What?” Her voice was far, far, _far_ quieter than she realised, or intended. 

“You think that Amity made a mistake by falling for you, don’t you.” Boscha repeated, her agro vanishing, and the more relaxed, calm Boscha that had been emerging over the last fortnight came back. “That there’s something wrong with you, and that Amity’s messed up somehow in feeling the way she does about you.” 

“That…” Words didn’t leave Luz’s mouth once again, and now, they were starting not to properly form in her head. All that really came to her mind was memories. 

Her schoolmates on Earth didn’t like her. She was the screw up. The weirdo. The _freak_. No one wanted to be around her. No one wanted to be her friend. And certainly no one liked her the way Amity did - That was a joke to them. They had taunted her when she fell for the joke. 

It didn’t happen back on Earth. 

_People did not like Luz Noceda._

That wasn’t how it worked. 

That was never how any of this had worked. 

That just - That didn’t happen.

...What other course of action did the Human have other than to internalise that? To realize that that was the way the world around her saw her? To hide into her own little corner of the world, and imagine a world that was nothing like the one she was born into. 

And now she was here. And she had friends. And that was already bizarre to her but… 

To think anyone even here would… 

Or that anyone like Amity would… 

“...How do you think I feel?” Boscha asked, pulling Luz out of her memories. 

Once again, the Grudgby Captain scanned over the store floor. This time, Willow was in Luz’s line of sight too, when Boscha located the Plant Witch. 

“You know what I thought when Willow asked me to help with this mess today?”

It was a rhetorical question. And a few seconds later, Boscha answered it herself. 

“I thought _‘This is it. This is how I fuck this all up.’_

Luz’s eyes returned to Boscha. 

“And that's how I feel _every single time_ I see her. Every… Single time, I think that I’m going to mess something up, or say the wrong thing, or she’s going to see through me, realize I’m the same… _Stupid, fucking bitch_ that ruined her life for years, that was stupid enough to catch feelings for her after she stopped. And every time, that’s not what happens. And then I have to think… How? How doesn’t she see through it? That doing this is just some… _Mistake.”_

“...Why do you care?” 

Boscha turned around, back to Luz. 

“About me and Amity. About what happens between us?” It was the only thing that Luz could even think to ask - The rest of her was… Overwhelmed. But she wanted to know either way though. “...Why do you care?” 

For a moment, Boscha looked like she was considering the question carefully, all three of her eyes looking up at the ceiling as she processed the reasons throughout her brain, before they returned to looking at the confused Human. “A few reasons, I guess. Willow cares about what happens between the two of you - She talks about it a lot. I’m tired of seeing you two skirt around one another…” 

Another pause. A slight blush appeared on the Witch’s cheeks. 

“...And, well, I guess I feel like I owe you. Because Willow is willing to put up with me because of you. Because you could have told her to steer clear of me, and she probably would have but… You gave me a chance as much as she did. So, I guess I want to see you figure things out with Amity. That and, well… I don’t like seeing myself in you like this.” 

“...Boscha, you don’t owe me - “ 

“We found this!” 

From behind the pair of them, Gus’s loud voice broke up their conversation - Behind him, Willow was holding up a sort of red, black sleeved short-dress. It had enough of a skirt to be, well, a skirt, while remaining decent, while also, if Luz wanted to, could let her combine it with a set of suit-pants if she so chose. Like they had seen the thought coming already, Willow and Gus had brought a set along with them too. 

The pattern on the short dress was haphazard and sporadic, with blotches of black in random locations, but the sleeves went from a gradient of black and red, being solid black at the ends, and turning more and more red the closer to the body it got. There were no frills, either. 

It practically looked like a perfect fit for the sort of style Luz liked. 

There was no word of warning - Gus just cast the Illusion Spell, and the outfit, waistcoat, and suit pants, appeared on Luz’s body. When Luz inspected it, her eyes fell on herself in the mirror. 

_She looked good._

“Oh, that,” Boscha said, giving a thumbs-up, “ _That_ I like.”

* * *

_‘You think Amity made a mistake.’_

That repeated in Luz’s head as she laid awake that night. They kept her awake. 

For a while, she thought that it might have been because she was looking forward to the Festivus - And she was looking forward to it. She was excited, even - Everything that surrounded the Festivus had captured her attention and she was looking forward to tomorrow, to seeing this whole thing take place - But that wasn’t what kept her awake that night. 

It was Boscha’s voice that kept her awake. The words that she had said to the Human. 

How alarmingly they resonated. 

_That Amity made a mistake._

_A mistake in falling in love with her._

_A mistake..._

Luz stared up at the ceiling above her. King was curled up to the side of her, and had been sleeping for hours now. She didn’t even know what time it was. She’d been like this for a while, long before she had gotten back to the Owl House, and it hadn’t died down in the time since returning. Just repeating the phrase in her head. 

_A mistake._

On Earth, there weren’t mistakes like this - People didn’t accidentally fall for someone like Luz. It just - It didn’t happen. And Luz had gotten used to that. She’d accepted that that was the way things were. She… 

…She’d put her heart into a box. The same box that let her block out how Amity felt about her to begin with. 

Only this time, it was directed towards herself. 

Because no one could like her - _Be in love with her_ \- like that. Because she had been stung so many times now, that that was easier to do than entertain the idea of someone liking her like that. Because it made sense - Because - 

_Because what other reason would there be for everything that happened Earthside?_

Because… Everyone else that Luz could think of outshone her in a thousand ways. Willow was a stronger Witch. Boscha was a more talented Witch. There had to be thousands of other Witches on the Isles that outshone Luz - It didn’t make sense for her to be the person Amity liked in the end. It just - It didn’t make sense to her. 

It was easier to acknowledge that. To acknowledge where she stood in relation to everyone else. Because as much as she had tried to reinvent herself here, to be someone different, to really… Be someone here… It was easier to acknowledge this fact. To know where the boundaries would lay. To know what was within the realm of possibility, and what wasn’t. 

But the Cherubim… The Cherubim made it impossible to lie. And Luz just… Didn’t understand. 

She didn’t know how she felt about Amity - Because she never gave herself the chance to figure it out. It was the same hurdle that had stopped her from knowing how Amity felt to begin with. 

...Was Boscha right? Did she know how she felt about Amity, deep down, but was just… Not able to figure it out because of the box she’d put her heart into? 

...Had Amity made a mistake, in falling for her? 

...It was hard not to feel like that was the case right now. 

Luz didn’t sleep that night.

* * *

**ALRIGHT YA’LL - We’re entering the final stretch - Valeween will be coming to a close on Chapter 20 - And I really think that what I have will be really nice for ya'll!**

**Honestly, I don’t think there’s much for me to say here - But there is one thing - I’m taking part in a huge multi-media project with the[Good Witches Society](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGoodWitchSociety/pseuds/TheGoodWitchSociety) (On Ao3) in the form of the[ Project Evergreen](https://archiveofourown.org/series/2124858) story - I’ll be helping write, organize, and do the occasional drawing for. Everyone there is solid, so do be sure to give it a check out - I’ll remind ya’ll by the end of this story - As well as revealing my next project, so stay tunes for that. **

**Until then - I hope that you enjoyed this chapter, and I’ll be seeing you next time - See ya!**


	18. The Passover Festivus

Tonight. 

Tonight, Amity was going to make sure she kept a cool head about all of this. 

Tonight, she was going to make sure that she didn’t panic, or freak out, or anything like that. 

Tonight, she was going to go to the Festivus with Luz. And they would have fun. And they would talk. And if Luz knew how she felt about her… 

...Then, whatever happened, would happen. And Amity would be a liar if she said she wasn’t afraid of the possibilities that came with that. 

All of this mattered to her. Her friendship with Luz. These feelings she had for her. Everything that they had. 

But she wasn’t going to freak out tonight. She wasn’t going to panic. She was going to go to the Passover Festivus with Luz. She was going to ask if Luz wanted to take part in the Passover Chorus with her. And they would have a good time. 

“Tonight.” Amity repeated to herself, before closing her eyes, letting out a long exhale, and walking out the front door.

* * *

Tugging at the waistcoat so it went an inch or two further down from her neck, Luz took another look at herself in the mirror. The contrast of colour that the grey waistcoat had on the bright red of the short-dress made both of them seem to stand out better, and the small, tiny patterns that were present all over the outside of the waistcoat that criss-crossed and weaved in and over one another looked like they stood out more in this lighting. And the black suit pants that she had highlighted the red further - It all complimented each other. 

The clothes felt good to wear, too - Maybe a bit warmer than the clothes Luz was used to wearing, but she could manage that. They felt comfortable to wear, and they didn’t restrict her movement whatsoever - She could do somersaults in them if she wanted to. 

For a while, she had thought about doing her hair up, like she had done at Grom - But she decided against it. She liked the look she had with her hair as it normally was in tandem with these clothes. Somehow, it felt like it complimented the whole thing. Luz wasn’t a fashion expert though, so she couldn’t begin to explain why she felt like that. Fashion expert or not though, she did have an artist's eye. She knew when something looked good, and right now, she did. 

She continued to look at the outfit, and at her face in the mirror. Something about it all felt… A bit unreal, like she wasn’t quite looking at herself, but at someone else. In a way, she sort of was, when she thought about it. The person she was looking at right now looked like they had been hardened by the environment they had found themselves within. They looked more tired, but optimistic at the same time. 

Right now, she… Kind of felt similar to how she did on the first day that she arrived on the Boiling Isles - Anxious, nervous, not entirely sure what she was getting into - But at the same time, excited, eager, and wanting to find out what she was going to find here. A chance to engage in a world that gave her the opportunities to do what she always wanted to, and would never be able to on Earth. And so much had happened, she had met so many people, and been in so many situations that she had grown and changed from - She wasn’t the same person who arrived on the Isles six months ago. 

And the person in the mirror was all of these things too, but... It was hard to describe. A part of her felt like she did back when she arrived here. Like she was just as anxious, nervous, and unaware as she was when she arrived. 

Maybe those feelings had to do with the Passover Festivus. In apprehension of what she had to look forward to, tonight. 

Almost certainly, actually. 

Amity would be here soon. And Luz was looking forward to seeing her. The closer and closer that time pulled them towards the Festivus, the more excited Luz got to see her friend. To go to the Festivus with her. But she was nervous too. More nervous than she had been about the prospect of hanging out with Amity ever since Valeween ended.

She couldn’t help but feel like that was because of Boscha. And what she had said.  _ ‘You think that Amity made a mistake by falling for you’  _

Or maybe that was because Boscha was an easy scapegoat right now. Maybe she just wanted an excuse - Something to blame her nerves on. 

...But did it matter in the end? In either case, she was still nervous.

A sigh escaped her, and she made herself look away from the mirror. She hadn’t slept since last night - Just a short nap of a couple of hours, and even then, she had needed to rely on some special Magical herbs that Eda had had laying around to induce drowsiness. Her anxiety about all of this had made falling asleep naturally impossible. She’d only gotten up about an hour ago, to get ready to go to the Festivus - Maybe her brain just needed a little longer to catch up with her. 

She certainly hoped that was the case. That she just needed a few minutes. And that after that happened, she’d be able to think clearly and logically again. 

That thought helped her to calm down a bit. 

“Hey, kid?” A knocking at her door pulled Luz’s attention from her thoughts. It was Eda’s voice. “You good?” 

“I - I’m good.” Luz answered, quickly rubbing her eyes and dusting down her outfit, just to make it seem like she wasn’t as much of a mess as she felt she was. “Come on in.” 

Pushing on the door, Eda entered the room. She was dressed up in the dark-and-grey feather dress Luz had suggested to her - Though she looked conflicted about it, now that she was actually wearing it. As she entered, she was tugging at a loose feather on the dress, trying to either bend it back into position, or pull it off outright - Whichever came first. 

“I feel ridiculous.” Eda said, flatly as she caught a glimpse of herself in Luz’s mirror. Her face scrunched up at the sight. “I’m pretty sure this was intended for someone who didn’t have grey hair.” 

“Don’t be silly!” Luz grinned, giving her mentor a double finger-gun gesture. “You look great!” 

“I’m starting to question if I should take your word on stuff, kid.” 

“Hey, you took my word on getting back in touch with Yeven, and look how well that’s working out!” 

Eda grumbled, but she notably didn’t argue. Instead, she glanced at Luz, and for the first time, properly took note of her outfit, and smirked. “Speaking of looking great though - Look at you, kid!” She returned the finger-gun gesture at the Human. “If you’re trying to dress to impress, you’re doing a pretty damn good job of it!” 

Luz quickly covered her face in response to that - Not because she couldn’t take a compliment, or because it made her feel awkward, but because it made her all the more aware of herself - And again, brought what Boscha had said to the forefront of her mind, and about why she cared so much about her attire yesterday. 

It just pulled her back into the head state she was trying to calm herself out of. 

“Nervous, huh?” Eda asked, rhetorically. She sighed, and her arms folded. “Yeah, I get how you feel right about now.”

Awkwardly, the Witch stood there for a few seconds, unsure what to say, but feeling that she had to say  _ something _ . 

“You know what I do when I’m nervous? I just try to remember how much I can steal from the people around me. And then do it.” She paused. “I mean, not that I’m going to steal anything from Yeven. That… Doesn’t seem like it’d do me any favours. And I guess you stealing from Green-Top wouldn’t… Actually, y’know what, forget I said anything.” 

A small sigh escaped Luz. She knew what Eda was trying to do, and she appreciated it - But it just wasn’t working right now. She had too much on her mind. Too many things that felt way too important. 

“I’m, er… I’m about to head out, anyway.” Eda told the Human, scratching at the back of her head, feeling mildly awkward and guilty about the state she was now going to have to leave Luz in. “Yeven’s place is a fair bit away, so I... Kinda need to head off now to pick them up with Owlbert.” 

For her part, Luz just nodded. She and Amity had agreed that Amity would come to the Owl House to meet with Luz there, and from there, they would circle back into Bonesborough. With Eda going out to meet Yeven, and with Lilith and King out doing… Whatever it was that they were up to, wherever it was that they had gone - Luz would have the house to herself for a while, if Hooty wasn’t being counted obviously, and he had promised to be on his best behaviour for tonight anyway. 

Right now, Luz felt like she could use the time to herself. 

“...You sure you’re gonna be alright here on your own, kid? I’ve got Yeven’s number. I can tell them that I’m gonna be a bit late if - “ 

“No!” Luz said, a bit louder than she meant to. “No, no, don’t. Sorry, I’m just… I’m nervous, that’s all. I’ll be fine.”

“...It’s weird, seeing you this nervous, kid.” Eda said, after a couple of seconds passed. “I don’t think you were this worked up about going to Hexside. Heck, you weren’t even this nervous just the other day. Something happen?” 

“N - No. It’s just… It’s here, y’know? Like, it’s happening tonight.” Luz gave her a half-truth - The real-ness of the event really was only just now dawning on her as it got closer and closer, that part was true, but she left out the conversation she had had with Boscha. Too many thoughts swam about in her head for her to be able to have that conversation right now. She shook her head, and then put on a smile. “I’m fine, Eda, really. I’ll be fine waiting on my own.” 

The Owl Lady looked at her pupil for a moment, like she was trying to see if she could spot a lie within the Human’s face. Maybe if she didn’t have to be in an equal rush to meet with Yeven, she might have spotted one of Luz’s tells. 

Instead, she let out a small sigh, let her arms fall to her side, and nodded. “Okay, Luz. I’ll take your word for it. Just... Take care of yourself, alright?” 

“Alright.” 

With that, Eda turned around, and left the room. Before the door shut behind her though, she held it open, and looked back at her pupil. 

“Try to have a good time, okay? You’re a kid - You don’t have to have this all figured out yet.” 

A slightly more genuine smile made its way onto Luz’s lips.

With that though, Eda let the door go. Gravity pulled the door shut, and the Owl Lady was out of sight. Luz made her way to the window of her room, and after about thirty-or-so seconds, Eda emerged from the Owl House. She glanced up at Luz’s room, saw the Human, and gave her a small wave, which Luz returned. 

Suddenly, the older woman shook her staff into action, waking up Owlbert, mounted the magical stick, and before Luz knew it, she was off, flying to wherever the heck it was Yeven lived. For just a moment, everything felt empty. What little motion had been present was now gone. Now it all felt still. Empty. 

Then, Luz allowed herself to sit on the edge of her bed, and fall into her own thoughts. 

She hadn’t meant to, obviously, but Eda had managed to bring the nervousness back to the front of Luz’s mind. But it hadn’t been like she was wrong, either - It hadn’t been all that bad the other day. It was there, sure, but it wasn’t like… This. This was new. This was more intense. 

And this  _ was _ because of Boscha. No question about that. Her words about what she thought Luz felt about Amity still echoed. 

_ ‘Made a mistake…’ _

It was… Hard not to feel like it was. 

That was the conclusion Luz had been able to come to. Not in the sense that Amity had somehow, literally, accidentally fallen for her…

...But that she couldn’t live up to that. The vision of her that Amity had. That… Whatever it was that Amity saw in her, she would let her down on. That… That Amity was wrong about her. That she saw someone that wasn’t there. 

Amity wanted her to stay, more than anything else - Anything else in the world, if the Cherubim were accurate - Because of what she saw in her. 

...She wasn’t sure she could live up to that. 

And was afraid that Amity had made a mistake in thinking that she could. 

...No. It wasn’t  _ just _ that. That had been the most… Maybe the most impactful thing that Boscha had said, that really made Luz stop in her tracks with all of this. That made her really think. 

But that hadn’t been all that she had said. There had been something else that had been on her mind too, that was tossing and turning in her heart. 

_ ‘You know exactly how you feel about her, don’t you.’ _

...Did she? 

Did Luz know how she felt about Amity? Saying that she didn’t just yesterday felt… Inaccurate. Like she was wrong. Second guessing herself. 

...Did she know? And was that what this whole…. Ring of confusion was? 

The feeling that Amity liked her was a mistake, but having these feelings buried away, blocking out the obvious signs that Amity liked her all this time… 

...Was that true? Was she aware of how she felt, and just… Afraid to acknowledge it? 

All of this was new territory. 

All of it was scary. It was terrifying. It was - 

_ “Hey Luz! Hey Luz! The mean girl is here for you, Hooty Hoot!” _

Luz literally leaped into the air, and felt her fight-or-flight response snap into action - Without thinking about it for even a nano-second, her hand came crashing down as a fist, straight into the side of what had snuck up on her and scared her half to death - Which turned out to be Hooty. 

_ “Ow! Ow!  _ Why does everyone keep hitting me like this, Hoot Hoot?!” The House Demon yelped, it’s body retreating out the window again. “I was just trying to help! Jeez!” 

“S - Sorry, Hooty!” A slightly panicked Luz stammered out, before she took a few breaths to try to collect herself - She had thought that she might have had more time! Had she been stuck in her own head for that long? She was supposed to have more time! She wasn’t ready! She - 

She stopped herself, and made herself look in the mirror, and take a deep breath. She was here. She was a Human on the Boiling Isles. She had faced down more monsters than she knew how to name. She had faced Witches who had an advantage over her in just about every way. She had fought criminals who wanted to put her in danger. She had faced the Cherubim, both the young and the adult, and everything that came with them. She had faced Grometheus. She had faced the  _ Emperor _ , for crying out loud! 

She could face Amity.

She could face this. 

Another shaky breath, and she forced herself to stand up straight. That was a good mantra to repeat to herself. Maybe she’d even manage to fool herself with it. 

The Human exhaled, and made her way down the stairs. She approached the door, took another inhale, reached for the door handle, and opened it. 

And there was Amity. 

“H - Hey, Luz.” Amity stammered, almost the second that the door began to swing open, before Luz could even see her. Even though she was seeing her for the first time tonight, Luz could already tell that Amity’s whole body had gone rigid the moment that she realised that Luz was there. 

Because of the way that Luz opened the door, face down, and then looking up, she saw Amity from the foot-upwards, before finally seeing her face. 

Outfit-wise, she was wearing a dress that was similar to her Grom outfit, at least in terms of make - Somehow, Luz had a feeling that the same person had designed both this, and her Grom outfit. The first thing that Luz noticed was that the outfit was sleeveless, leaving Amity’s arms bare, and her shoulders almost completely bare. The torso was a similar dark-purple to the Grom costume, which was held in place by two straps that went over her shoulders. A sort of see-through webbing-type pattern connected the two straps. A necklace with a brighter, purple pendant was also worn, which landed around the centre of her chest. 

Her dress was a bit longer than it had been at Grom, but looked like it was more suited to an outdoor type of gathering. It was a far deeper, darker, but richer purple than the torso section, bordering onto black. It reached past her knees, and halfway down her shins. The shoes were the same as Grom - Luz would bet her life on it. 

Then came her face. 

Like she had been doing since the destruction of Blight Manor, Amity’s hair was down, without any hair-pins or hair-ties to speak of. Her hair was messy, and was doing whatever it wanted - But in a way that seemed almost deliberate tonight. There were curls, and twists, and her ears poked out behind tufts of hair that were framing her face on either side. She seemed to have made an effort to comb her fringe back, and to the side, so it both stayed out of her eyes, and swept across, showing her forehead clearly.

Where, and when she had gotten either the money or the time to buy clothes like this since the destruction of the Manor, or how she had managed to do herself up like this - Probably with help from Emira and Edric, if she had to guess - Luz didn’t know. 

_ What she did know was that Amity looked beautiful.  _

And how easily that thought got into her head threw her for a loop. It actually stole her breath for a moment. 

“H… H - Hey.” Luz managed to say after a short while. For another moment, she just stood there, somehow aware that she wasn’t blushing, but knew for a fact that she could be at a milliseconds notice. “E - Er… Wow. You look… Wow.” 

Amity blinked, and her ears twitched, before a blush of her own appeared. “T… Thank you. You look…” A few seconds passed. “...Very… Wow… Too…” 

Another couple of seconds passed, and the two of them just looked at one another. 

Luz was the first one to break, and start to giggle -  _ ‘Wow’ was seriously the  _ best  _ that they could manage? _ Amity joined in a couple of seconds after and it felt like the nervous tension between the two of them was literally being melted away. 

_ She could do this, _ Luz repeated to herself. It was  _ Amity  _ \- How hard could this  _ possibly  _ be? 

Stepping out of the Owl House, and closing the door behind her - And quickly apologising to Hooty for hitting him earlier - Luz stepped next to Amity, and felt herself herself gulp silently. She stood next to the other girl, awkwardly.

Small talk - That was a good idea, right? 

“So… Are you doing okay?” 

“I’m… Okay.” Amity said, carefully. “...Nervous.” She admitted, shortly after.

“Yeah… Me too.” Luz nodded. That was a good sign at least - If Amity was nervous too, then that meant that it was normal for Luz to feel as nervous as she was feeling, right?

“...You know, if…. If you want to call this off, I won’t, you know, blame you.”

“I don’t want to.” Luz’s answer to that was quick, and automatic. Her head turned to face Amity just as automatically, For a moment, her expression was a frown, but she quickly forced it to turn to a smile. “I… I’ve been looking forward to it. I’m just… It’s… Kind of a lot, you know?” 

Her face had gone red when Luz said she had been looking forward to it, but Amity nodded at the rest. Her head hung, slightly. “I… I understand. I… Know it’s not worth much, but… I am sorry for putting you in this situation, Luz.” 

“It’s not your fault.” Luz assured her, quickly. “It… It’s just one of those things, I guess.” 

“...What things?” 

“Just… One of those things that… I don’t know, actually. I - It’s just a Human expression.” 

“Oh.” 

Another brief silence. 

In the distance, the lights of Bonesborough caught their eyes - Magic and street lamps cut through the dusk of the evening. Colours, and the distance sounds of music, and white noise of conversation finally caught up to the two of them. It was like watching a party from afar just burst into life all at once. 

There hadn’t even been a build up or anything like that - One second, things were quiet and Bonesborough was barely visible outside the normal lights that could be seen from this distance - The next, noise and colours just suddenly jumped out at them - Like fireworks. 

Also the actual Magic-powered fireworks contributed to that sense. 

“It’s the Festivus.” Amity said, gently, looking into the distance alongside Luz. “It’s starting.” 

Something inside Luz made her heart jump at that - It was hard to explain, but it made it all feel like it was real - That it wasn’t just some dream that she was having, or some massive hallucination, or… Whatever else it might have been. This was real. The Festivus was here. And she was here with Amity.

“Um… Should we get going, then?” Luz asked, turning to look back at Amity.

Amity turned back to Luz, and nodded. 

And they both began to make their way towards the city.

* * *

“...Lots of the stalls have games, or sell food, or have fortune telling, or… Just stuff to do in general. It really depends a lot on where you go throughout the town.” 

“It really does just sound like a street festival back on Earth.” Luz commented, blinking at the lights in the distance. Willow had described it as such back after the Grudgby match, but the specifics had been a bit vague, and Luz had been too preoccupied with getting an outfit sorted to ask yesterday. Something about that made her feel a bit more comfortable - It made the Passover Festivus feel a bit more familiar to her. 

“It’s not too dissimilar to a street fair.” Amity nodded. “It’s just… All over the town.” A slight pause. “Does Earth have anything like that?” 

“Kind of.” Luz shrugged. “It depends where on Earth you are, but there are a bunch of holidays that we celebrate every year, and put up decorations all over towns and cities. We don’t really have city wide festivals though. Not where I’m from, anyway.” A small smile appeared. “I didn’t expect you to bring up Earth though. You know, considering.” 

Considering what exactly Amity had said to them while under the Cherubim’s influence, and in the conversations that they had had after that point. Honestly, ever since she learned about that, Luz had been trying to limit how often she spoke about Earth while in Amity’s presence - although sometimes it was unavoidable - out of conscientiousness and respect regarding her anxiety about that subject. 

This was perhaps the first time since Valeween that Amity had willingly brought up, asked about, or even said the word ‘Earth’. 

“Yes, well…” Amity looked straight ahead, trying not to let Luz see her cheeks. “...I’ve been… Reassured about that.” 

A small, quiet, single laugh escaped Luz after that. She was glad. Glad that their conversations had at least alleviated that particular fear of hers, even if in reality it was only a little, and Amity was just trying to put on a brave face. If there was at least one good thing to have come out of all of that drama, she was glad that it was that. 

Though she didn’t know if that was the only thing to have come out of all of this. 

Both of them continued to walk down the path, absently engaging in small talk about whatever topic they could think of, or wherever their conversation naturally led them, or otherwise engaging in comfortable, but slightly awkward, silences. Neither of them felt a compulsive need to talk, or to say something just to fill the silence. It was like any other time since Valeween that they had spent together, so much on their minds. And they were comfortable with it...

...And yet, there was a part of them both that missed the way they spoke before. About anything and everything, without any hesitation, or these feelings to give them pause. Amity in particular missed hearing Luz just ramble about whatever was on her mind, be it Azura lore, the Magic she learned in classes, or whatever had happened to her that day. And Luz missed doing the same. 

Given everything though… It felt a bit odd to do so now. In a way that made sense only to them. Like a silent agreement that they had wordlessly agreed upon. Like they knew they were both nervous and wanted to be careful and respectful of that. 

Constantly though, Luz caught herself glancing towards Amity as the pair of them walked through the woods and along the paths to Bonesborough.

She was barely even doing it consciously - She would catch herself looking at the other girl, before forcing herself to look away. Sometimes, Amity would glance over at her as well, and once or twice, they would try to steal a glance at the same time, and ended up meeting the others eyes - And like two magnets facing one another, repelled them away from one another's sight, hoping the other hadn’t seen. Luz’s eyes would always glance back over, though. And so did Amity’s. 

Looking back, Luz realised that she had been doing it a lot since Valeween had ended - But she hadn’t thought much of it back then. If she was willing to extend the timeline a bit more, then she realised that she’d been doing that for… A while, honestly. Out of just a desire to see the other girl. One of the more recent but noteworthy examples she could think of being the photos she had of Amity on her Scroll, which she looked over after their fight. 

Back then, she had just wanted to see Amity, for reasons that didn’t make sense to her. 

Now a part of her was wondering if they did make sense, and she had just not acknowledged it, or knew the words for it. 

Or blocked it out. 

“...So, er… Amity.” Luz started, trying to carefully choose her words as she spoke. “You’ve… Been to one of these before, right?” 

Amity nodded, tentatively. “When I was young, but, I have.” 

“Is there er… Anything in particular you want to do there? I have no idea what to expect, I’m just kinda winging it, here.” 

For a moment, Amity considered it in her head. As she thought, she fought hard not to let her cheeks go red - Maybe it was selfish, and maybe it was corny - But she wanted it to be a surprise. “...There’s er… There’s only one thing I can think that I definitely want to do.”

“Well, that’s more than what I’ve got.” Luz answered, cheerfully, and in a way that could only make Amity smile. “What is it?”

“It’s… A thing that happens at midnight.” Amity explained, intentionally vaguely. “It’s… Considered bad luck to talk about it before then, but it’s called the Passover Chorus.” 

Luz blinked a few times. “...Is it like, a song, or something?” 

“No, it’s… Something else.” 

Admittedly, Luz was curious, but she decided not to pry any further than that. She remembered that on the Isles, superstitions were still a thing - And she remembered how seriously everyone tried to avoid talking about Valeween and the Cherubim the night before it became clear that Valeween was here. If it was considered bad luck, she would respect that, and Amity. 

Besides - If it made Amity happy, then she was okay with doing whatever. 

“Either way, I’m down for it!” Luz agreed, giving Amity a thumbs up and a smile. “...Not like I know what else there is to do anyway.” 

Amity returned the smile. “There are a lot of stalls that are scattered about the place. It’s not like we won’t have things to be doing.” 

“You see any that look like fun?” 

“Well… Let's see…”

* * *

Bonesborough was a city with a unique culture, Luz had learned over her time on the Isles. Even under peacetime, there was a certain charm and atmosphere to the town that made it feel just that little bit more different than anywhere else that she had been on the Isles. Different to Glandus. Different to the villages by the Skull of the Titan. A feeling that was truly unique to Bonesborough. 

After Valeween, Luz felt like she knew what was the cause of that - The sense of community that the town had. The way that everyone had come together, to fortify, to prepare, to protect one another when the Emperor wasn’t going to - She was sure that other towns had done the same, and protected themselves from the incoming Cherubim waves, but there was something uniquely  _ Bonesborough  _ that just etched through. 

That sense of community was weird - It never felt like it was always there, but now, Luz knew it was, and couldn’t ignore it. People didn’t like everyone in the town. Many hated other people within it. And until Valeween, it felt like any other town on Earth - Minus the cosmic horrors, of course. But even in spite of that, when it came right down to it, people worked together, and helped one another. They protected their town, and one another, even when they didn’t like the people they fought alongside. Community that overwrote and mattered more than any one person's individual feelings, that they would put aside for. 

It blended into the way the city worked - It was difficult to explain, really, but it felt like it was a part of, well, everyone. That it was now a part of Luz, and that it was something that she was never going to be rid of. That she was a part of this culture now. 

Coloured lights, magical stalls that animated their advertisements, unique set ups, and possibly hundreds of people littered the streets that Luz and Amity walked down. The tapestries that had been put up just a couple of days ago lightly waved in the warm night’s wind. Each street and path that they followed was filled with these stalls, banners, and people, feeling like it was getting more and more dense the closer to the centre of the city that they got. The whole thing really did feel like one big fairground. 

“Wow.” Luz commented, walking past another few tapestries - These ones intersected with various lights and colours. “People really went all in for the decorations, huh?” 

“It’s… This is a pretty important festival for a lot of people.” Amity responded. Luz knew that she included herself in this. For obvious reasons. 

Mostly, Luz was following Amity through the crowds and stalls, though Amity herself was mostly just wandering with only a vague sense of direction. Mostly, Amity wanted to make sure that they were at least within walking distance of the main plaza once the Chorus began. 

As well as the tapestries, there were more traditional banners up too - Ones that had writing on them. One of them hung between two sides of a street, so it was above Amity and Luz as they walked underneath it. 

_ ‘Welcome to Passover Festivus of the Valeween Menace’ _ It read. Luz hadn’t actually heard anyone - Aside from that one sentient banner that she had seen a couple of days ago - that called it by that name. Maybe that was it’s official name, but everyone shortened it down to the Passover Festivus for the ease of speaking. Like how Valentine’s Day on Earth was shortened from Saint Valentine’s Day. 

All around them, people were engaging in all manner of activities - Some were gathered into small groups, engaging in conversation, or going stall to stall to engage in whatever was available. Lots of the stalls were active, advertising themselves in whatever ways they could. 

Stalls were divided up into two types from what Luz could see - The types that sold goods or services and would charge, and those that didn’t have a cost to use. The former were set up by business-people, who were there to take advantage of the event as anyone else did. The latter were there to make sure even those who didn’t have money would be able to spend the Festivus unwinding and being a part of the celebrations. In both of these cases, stalls were vending all manner of things, from foods, to games. 

One of which caught Luz’s eye. 

“Hey, Amity, hold up!” The Human said, reaching out and gently grabbing hold of Amity’s arm. When the Witch stopped walking, Luz pointed in the direction of the stall that she had seen. “Check it out!” 

The stall that Luz pointed out was a simple ball-tossing game - A series of cans were stacked up into the shape of a triangle, and were placed at the end of a lane. People were given three decently-weighted throwing balls, and the goal was to knock down all of the cans by throwing them at the cans. It was about as simple as carnival games got. 

Regardless though - Luz looked extremely excited.

“I’m like, the best at these things!” She declared to Amity as they made their way to the stall. “I spent a ton of time in arcades back on Earth, and got super good at the Skee-ball machines! It’s kinda similar!” 

“...I don’t think I understood a word of that.” Amity said, frankly, blinking at her crush with confusion. “What the heck is an ‘arcade’?”

“It - It’s kind of like, a building that's just full of games - Don’t you have anything like that here?” 

“I… Don’t know if we do? If we do, I’ve never been to one.” 

For her part, Luz just stared at Amity. Slowly, a grin appeared. “...Oh my god, if I ever find a portal back to Earth, I am  _ so _ taking you to an arcade. You’d love it!” 

A blush that reached Amity’s ears appeared - Just the prospect of getting to spend time with Luz like that outside of this, whatever came of it, made her happy. 

“Until then though - Do you wanna try at this?” Luz asked, gesturing at the stall they now stood in front of. The expression on her face was basically impossible to say no to. Amity just nodded. “Hah! Yes! I’m gonna win you like, the biggest plush!... Or, if you don’t have plushes, whatever the Boiling Isles equivalent of that is!” 

One brief conversation and exchange of money later, Luz was equipped with three throwing balls - Which apparently, she wasn’t supposed to think too hard about when they screamed while in mid-air - and took up position, ready to throw. Extending her left arm, and using it as a sort of aiming tool, she pulled her right arm back, and got ready to throw. 

Then, she lobbed the ball, hard as she could. 

She completely missed the pile of cans, the ball screeching as it passed them and hit the back of the tent. 

“....That was just a warm-up.” Luz quickly said, before grabbing another ball, and aiming again. “This time for sure!” 

Both the stall-keeper and Amity just blankly stared at Luz. “Er, Luz - “

Another ball was thrown, just as fast - And this time, the ball hit it’s target straight on, centre of the target - But it bounced off, and the cans didn’t budge an inch. 

“What the - “ Luz stared at the pile of cans, blinking in disbelief. “I hit it!”

“Luz… This is a Magic Game.” Amity explained. As she said so, she gestured to one of the notices on the side of the stall that very clearly and obviously explained that this was a game that required the use of Magic. “The cans only respond to the strength of your Magic.” 

For a second, Luz just stared back at Amity, before snapping her fingers. “Right, Boiling Isles. I don’t know why I keep forgetting that. Hold on, I think I brought… Some… Glyphs...” Quickly, she began ruffling through the various pockets of her waistcoat and dress, hoping to find something that she could use. Her face quickly fell though. “...I er… I think I forgot them back home. And I don’t have any paper either...” 

Amity couldn’t help but sigh, but also smile at the ridiculousness of it - Somehow, it both absolutely did, and completely didn’t surprise her that Luz would forget how prominent Magic was on the Isles, and the many situations it would be used in. Granted, her way of casting Magic was unique, but the fact that she had forgotten her Glyphs when she was going out to a festival of this size and of this prominence was just  _ oh-so-very _ Luz that Amity couldn’t help but grin at it. 

“You wanna give it a try, Amity?” Luz offered, holding out the ball for her to either take or decline. 

“You’ve already paid for it.” Amity accepted the ball, and took the same position that Luz had taken. “It would be a waste not to.” 

Casting a spell on the ball, Amity caused it to be engulfed in flames with her fire Magic. Then, she took a step back, and used her left hand to aim just as Luz had done. She narrowed her eyes, and then, carefully, she double checked her aim - And then lobbed the ball at speed. 

Years of Grudgby practice had left Amity with a much better aim that the average person - Without needing a throw or two to judge the weight of the ball, account for curvature, or anything like that, Amity scored a direct hit on the center target. Immediately, the rest came crashing down off the table and onto the ground. 

“Hah!” Luz pumped a fist into the air in celebration. “Nice one, Amity!”

A smirk appeared on Amity’s face as she allowed herself a moment of smug pride at the accomplishment. The praise she got didn’t hurt, either. 

The shopkeeper whistled. “Nice throw, kid.” He then gestured to the array of prizes that were on display on the shelf behind him. Most were, in fact, various plushies of various cultural icons and references of the Boiling Isles. “A’ight, go ahead and pick whichever one y’like.” 

“You should pick, Luz.” Amity said, side-stepping from the stall. “You’re the one that paid for it.” 

“No way - You totally knocked it out of the park! You should pick!” 

“I also just won you a prize.” 

There was a glint in Amity’s eyes that Luz caught as Amity used her own earlier promise against her - She knew exactly what she was doing. And Luz didn’t actually have an argument against it. 

But she did note that it seemed like Amity was having fun. And that was what mattered, so, she relented. 

“Alright, alright.” She said, her hands half raised in mock-surrender, as well as rolling her eyes in an exaggerated manner. She stepped up to the stall and looked at the prizes on display. “You win, Amity.” 

Amity grinned. She then looked just over Luz’s shoulder, and blinked. “I er, probably should have asked sooner, but did you eat anything before we came here, Luz?” 

“Er….” Luz blankly stared at Amity for a few seconds. “...I did not, no. I was er… Too busy getting ready.” And sitting in her room contemplating the nature of their relationship, her feelings, this entire Festivus, and what Boscha had said - But Amity didn’t need to hear _ any _ of that. 

“There's a snack bar just across the streets - Do you want anything?” 

‘I… Barely even know what carnival foods are here. I’ve only been to like, one of these things while I’ve been here, and the guy who invited me there tried to kill me.” 

“...You have an odd life.” Amity flatly stated, before she scratched at her cheek and thought for a second. “Knowing you… I think you’d like candy dross.”

“That… Sounds disgusting.” 

“I promise you, it tastes far better than it looks. Or sounds.”

Luz shrugged. It wasn’t like she had a ton of other options anyway. “Okay then, I’ll trust you - I’ll have one of those.” 

With a nod, Amity departed. Luz watched her go off in the direction of the snack bar, to make sure she knew which direction she was in once she was done here. A small sigh escaped her, and she couldn’t help but smile. There was something about this, this simple moment that both of them were engaging in - It felt good. It felt right. She liked being around Amity. 

There wasn’t any other way she could really describe it - In spite of all the internal conflicts and contradictions, and thoughts and fears that swirled around inside her mind and body - It felt right. 

It felt good. 

“Y’know, I have an eye for this sort of thing.” The stall keeper suddenly said. When Luz turned to him, he had a big, but friendly smile on his face. “She reminds me of my wife back when we were about your age. Trust me, kid, that one’s a keeper.” 

“She - “ Luz’s face erupted into a blush. “She - She’s not my girlfriend or - Or - That - That’s not - It -“ she made a very conscious effort to force herself to calm down, or at the very least, not babble like that. “It… It’s complicated.” 

A look of recognition flooded the man's face. Given the nature of the Festivus, he seemed to put it together immediately. “Ah. One of those cases, huh?” Luz just nodded. “Yeah, I’ve already seen a few kids who’re in pretty much the same state as you two. Best of luck to you two on that. But, either way - You want to pick a prize?” 

“Oh, right!” To that, Luz forced herself to shake the blush away from her cheeks, and scanned over the prizes that were on the shelf. “Let’s see - _ Oh my god, that one. _ ” 

The stall keeper seemed surprised by Luz’s choice. He glanced back and forth between Luz, and the prize she was pointing at. “Seriously? I’m gonna be honest with you, I only put that up there because my daughter wanted to make something for the Festivus - “

_ “It is amazing and I love it.”  _ Luz immediately answered, her eyes practically sparkling.

Again, the stall keeper looked confused by her choice, but he then shrugged, and retrieved the plush for Luz. The thing was actually fairly large, and for a second, the Human was worried that she would have to choose another prize, because carrying this thing around all Festivus would be wildly impractical. The stall keeper however, reached under his desk as well, and produced a small pouch, which he then tapped the plush with - And the plush was taken inside. He then handed the punch to Luz, dropping it into her open hands. “There you go, kid.”

The thing was light, too - Like the plush wasn’t even there. Magic on the Isles really was incredible, Luz thought to herself. “Oh - Thank you!” 

“Thanks for stopping by - Best of luck on your date!” The stall keeper smirked again, and waved as Luz made her move away from the stall. 

_ Date. _

For a second, every other thought in Luz’s brain stopped as that word practically hit her over the head. For some… Absolutely  _ bizarre  _ reason, that word hadn’t once come up in her mind until just now. 

Taking a moment to glance around, and being really, really observant, Luz realised - A lot of the people here seemed to be in couples. Some of them were far more comfortable than others were, and she could swear that she could pinpoint which ones here were in a similar situation to her and Amity, but they were here in couples. Some were here in groups, some just as friends, some as group relationships. And she remembered the ‘Informal tradition’ that Willow had mentioned. 

_... _ Was _ this a date?  _

Had she subconsciously realised that it was a date before now? Was that why she had been so bothered about the clothes that she wore for this event? Was that why her heart and head wouldn’t stop putting these thoughts and feelings at the front of everything? 

Even if it wasn’t, and even if she hadn’t - Did it matter? Was there a pragmatic difference at the end of the day? Was calling it an ‘informal tradition’ just semantics, or just some sort of cultural distinction-without-a-difference for the people of the Isles? 

_ Was she here on a date with Amity, for all intents and purposes?  _

“Oh, Luz! There you are!” 

Luz could have sworn that she felt an electric jolt shoot straight up through her spine as she heard Amity’s voice. Immediately, her head shot up, and saw Amity approaching her, two… Luz had to assume they were ‘Candy Dross’, whatever they were, in hand. She tried exceptionally, exceptionally hard to control the blush she felt on her cheeks. 

“Hey! Amity! Hey!” She tried to sound casual, failing miserably, and silently yelling at herself for failing at the attempt. 

Though Amity didn’t seem to notice the overreaction - Or just didn’t respond to it. “I thought you’d gotten lost. You weren’t by the stall, and the guy told me you went off this way.” 

“S - Sorry, I got... Kind of turned around, and lost track of you.” Technically, that wasn’t a lie, either. The only difference was she had gotten turned around in an emotional sense, rather than a physical one. Quickly turning her attention to what Amity had in her hands, Luz meekly pointed and asked, “What uh… What’s that?” 

“Candy Dross.” As she spoke, Amity held out one for Luz to take. It was hard for the Human not to make an apprehensive expression. “It’s better than it looks, I promise.” Amity said, trying to reassure her. 

It looked sort of like regular candy floss back on Earth, with a few notable exceptions - It was green, for one thing, whereas candy floss was normally pink or blue. That wasn’t a huge issue in and of itself, but there were bits of what looked like rock-candy, or the closest Boiling Isles equivalent anyway, scattered throughout. Some parts of it were almost moving, like how some places would serve still moving fish back in her home dimension. It wobbled, like jelly. 

For the life of her, Luz could have sworn that there were chunks of  _ meat  _ in it, and she had to admit - She really was beginning to question her choices here. 

Still, she took the thing from Amity, and reminded herself that she trusted Amity’s judgement here. Glancing over the top of her Candy-Dross, she saw Amity watching her expectantly, like she knew exactly what Luz’s visceral response to the dross would be, but was just waiting for her to take a bite, and prove herself wrong. 

Another part of it moved - There was _definitely_ meat mixed in with this thing.

_ She said she was gonna trust Amity’s judgement though.  _ So _ ,  _ forcing herself, Luz closed her eyes, and took a bite. 

And then another bite. 

And then another. 

“Oh, wow.” Luz finally said, blinking in surprise. “Huh, that is… Way better than it has any right to be.” The food of the Boiling Isles had to be some of the weirdest food that she’d ever had in her life, yet even in the six months that she had been here, it still continued to surprise her. 

Once more, Amity grinned. And for some reason, this time, that grin made Luz feel things. “So… Which prize did you pick out?” 

“Oh, right! Here, hold this for a sec?” Luz reached for the pouch in her pocket, and handed her Candy-Dross back to Amity for her to hold while she got ready to hold the thing. She then tugged at the string that held the Magic to contain the prize, and held it above her head. “Behold!” 

From the bag came a small glow of Magical energy, which then began to take the form of the plush that Luz had selected from the kiosk - It took shape, and once it matched the shape of the prize, the Magical energy turned physical, and dropped into Luz’s hands. 

The only way that Amity could even begin to describe it was as the single most tacky Slitherbeast plush that she had ever seen in her entire life. The thing was ugly, to be perfectly blunt about it. The only reason that the Witch was even capable of recognising it as a Slitherbeast was because she had actually seen one in person, and could see what the designer had been trying to do. The anatomy was wrong in the limbs, some being too long or too short, the fur looked much too rough to be akin to a Slitherbeasts, and there were patches of the thing that weren’t even the same colour as the rest of the plush, but a different variation of silver or white. 

“Ta-da!” Luz chimed as she presented the monstrosity, a huge bright grin covering her face. “What d’you think?” 

“It’s… Er… Unique.” Was the most charitable thing Amity could say about it. She couldn’t exactly bring herself to praise… Whatever odd, unique charms Luz saw in it. 

It made Luz smile though. That was what made Amity happy. 

“Oreo is a good boy.” Luz grinned, tapping the plush with the pouch to return it to it’s confines, and then putting said pouch in a waistcoat pocket. Amity decided not to question the name Luz had given the thing. “So - Which way now?” 

Picking a random direction to walk in, Luz and Amity wandered down another crowded street, with more groups and more stalls all engaging with one another. They walked, ate their Candy-Dross, and just took in the sights around them. It was difficult to accurately state how packed and how unique the Festivus was. 

As was to be expected of a once-a-decade-on-average celebration, Luz supposed, as she chewed on her Candy-Dross some more. 

_ A once-in-a-decade-on-average celebration that she was, for all practical purposes, on a date with Amity at.  _

Why her heart refused to just behave itself and why her brain refused to stop thinking about that possibility, she didn’t know. 

“So… I have to ask. Why… Did you choose that, anyway?” Amity suddenly asked, catching the Human off guard.

“W - Well, I mean… You suggested it. And, hey, you were right, it tastes a lot better than it looks!“

“I don’t mean the candy dross, Luz.” Amity laughed gently. “I meant the Slitherbeast prize.” 

“Oh.” Luz awkwardly chuckled, her hand absently reaching for the small bag that resided in her pocket. She held onto it, just to make sure it was still there. A streak of red hit her cheeks. “Well… Do you remember when we had to fight that one Slitherbeast back on the Knee months ago?” 

“ _ Very clearly _ .” Amity answered, about as flatly as she possibly could. That entire incident had been… Well, it had been a mixed bag in a number of ways, to put it lightly, and that felt like a very odd way of describing a day where Amity and her siblings had nearly gotten  _ eaten. _ It was an exceptionally clear memory in her mind. 

Her eyebrow was now raised though - Did Luz get it as a memento of that moment? A moment that very nearly could have ended with them both being killed? 

It wouldn’t be the  _ weirdest thing Luz had done _ , granted, but still. 

The answer Luz gave was slightly different, though. “Well… It’s… That’s kind of when we really started being friends, isn’t it?” 

Amity blinked. 

That… Wasn’t wrong. 

Up until that point, she had been apprehensive about Luz, for a number of reasons. Because of the incident at Hexside with Willow and her pretending to be an Abomination, their Witches Duel at the Covention - Just the fact that she was a Human, honestly, although that was something she wasn’t especially proud of these days. Just an intersecting number of things that had made 

Even after the library incident, Amity had kept her guard up around Luz, at that point basically on instinct. 

After they fought the Slitherbeast together though, and rescued Eda, Emira and Edric, it was practically impossible for her to consider Luz anything other than a friend. 

And, if she were willing to admit it, where a lot of these feelings she had now began to form. It was what made her really start to take note of Luz. Look back on their old interactions, and pay attention to the new ones. And quickly - Well, she ended up feeling the way that she did. 

She hadn’t… Thought about it though. Not for a while a least. With everything that Luz seemed to get herself and her friends involved with on practically a weekly basis, Amity barely had the time to reflect on that sort of thing anymore. And when she did have the time, her mind was more in the present. Focusing on those feelings in the here and now. 

The Human smiled. “It reminded me of that, that’s all.”

“Oh, I - I see.” Amity smiled herself, and began to face forwards again. So she hadn’t been entirely wrong. Luz’s logic was just different. 

Amity liked Luz’s logic a lot more. 

Both of them began to walk down another path, side by side. At some point, and neither of them could for the life of them realized when - But their hands ended up joining. 

Neither pulled away.

* * *

The night went on, and as it did, the Human and the Witch made more and more of an effort to explore and experience as much of the Festivus as they were able to. The Festivus was important to those on the Isles, and a ton of work went into making the event as special and memorable as possible - After the invasion of the Cherubim, it was hard not to feel like the people deserved it. There was so much variety on every corner, that it was practically guaranteed to be impossible to do all of it.

But Luz and Amity made an effort to do so either way. 

Dozens of games stalls were put up on just about every street that they came across, and each time, they would stop, and try their luck at said games - Which ended up being a mixed bag, at least in terms of outcome. Sometimes, Luz would be able to completely decimate the stalls games, and sometimes Amity would be able to overpower the Magic requiring-games to snatch victory, but sometimes, they would both fail, either through their own inability to succeed or because - And they would both swear that this happened at least twice, but had no way to prove it - the stall keeper pulled some slight-of-hand shenanigans that neither could prove, and would then leave the stall with nothing. 

It never stopped being fun though. 

Amity would occasionally take Luz to a snack bar, and try to convince her into trying the various weird, odd foods that the Isles produced for events especially like this. With as little as she had eaten today, Amity almost felt a responsibility to make sure that Luz was fed. Snap-corn ended up being a success, although Ice-Scream turned out to be… A bit too much for Luz to handle. 

Physically and emotionally. 

Performances were also a part of the Festivus too. Magic shows - Only in a far more literal sense than back on Earth - were especially popular. Of course, those were regulated by members of the Emperors Coven, making sure that people remained within Coven restrictions, and within the limits of what was allowed for a time such as this, but the displays of skill and talent were impressive and a sight to behold all the same. Luz took an especial interest in watching one of those, fascinated and enchanted by the displays that were done before her.

At one point, the two of them actually saw Emira and Viney together, on the opposite end of one of the streets that they walked along. Luz wanted to run over to say hello to the two of them, but Amity quickly stopped her, convinced her not to, and pulled her way - The one thing that the young Witch didn’t want right now was to deal with her sister being, well, her sister.

There would be plenty of opportunities later to deal with the whole ‘Emira apparently dating one of Luz’s friends’ situation. Although after that, Luz began to keep an extra eye out for Willow and Boscha, even when the chances of seeing them were slim. But hey, the chances of seeing Emira and Viney had been slim, and they had come about all the same. 

Time flew by, as the pair of them went from stall to stall and from street to street, exploring and laughing and just having fun. More and more, the thoughts of what exactly today was, and what it meant, became less and less of a worry for Luz. She was just having fun. 

Eventually, after hours had passed since their arrival, they wound up at a particular section of the Festivus which seemed to be centred around rides - Nothing as extravagant as a rollercoaster for example, but simple, more quiet rides. One of which being a Ferris wheel-like ride, which had hollowed-out skulls instead of regular passenger cars. 

Which Luz promptly pulled Amity towards, and within a couple of minutes, the two of them were in a skull-shaped capsule in the middle of the air.

“I think I can see the entire Festivus from up here!” Luz cheered once they reached the top, and the wheel came to a halt. She could see over the nearby buildings and across several streets - The entire Festivus was an exaggeration, but it felt like she could see everything from up here. 

At the foot of the wheel, the attendant was letting some previous riders off, and letting new riders on. The whole process would take a bit each time, meaning that they would be up here for a short while. 

Honestly though, that was fine by Luz - The sight from up here, of all the lights and stalls was amazing! She wondered if she could spot Willow and Boscha from up here - 

“Hey… Luz?” 

When Amity said her name, Luz quickly turned to face her. Her expression was… It was difficult to describe. There was a smile on her face, and there was that certain spark in her eye that let Luz know that she wasn’t sad, but there was… Something else there. In all the six months Luz had spent on the Isles, she couldn’t ever really figure out how to read Amity perfectly. 

“Yeah, Amity? What’s up?” 

“...I just wanted to say thank you.” 

“Huh? For what?” 

“For coming here with me.” 

Amity’s fingers on either hand intertwined with the other hands, and she rested them on her knees just in front of her. A red blush accented her cheeks, and a small smile covered her lips. Her eyes though, struggled to meet Luz’s. Whenever they tried to, they would always dart away quickly. 

“...I…” She started to say, but seemed to struggle finding the right words, and her voice didn’t seem to sound right to her. She cleared her throat, and tried again. “...I know what I told you while I was affected by the Cherubim was… I know it’s made things awkward between us.” 

Luz blinked, and she stopped kneeling up to see out the side of the capsule. She took the seat opposite Amity, and gave her her full attention. “It… It wasn’t  _ that _ awkward - ”

“It’s been extremely awkward, Luz.” Amity said, extremely flatly. “You don’t have to… Pretend that it wasn’t.”

If Luz were being totally, a hundred-percent honest… There were awkward parts of it - sometimes the silences were awkward, and sometimes the ways that they looked at each other felt awkward. It was never a bad awkward, and Luz would defend that statement as much as she needed to. 

It was weird, how a situation could be both awkward, and not awkward at the same time. But that was just one of those things about Amity. 

Or part of the things that she felt about Amity. 

“I know I… Put you in a really awkward position with all of this. And you didn’t have to come here with me… Or even be around me after I told you how I felt about you.” 

Suddenly, the Ferris-wheel moved again, just for a moment though - It moved to allow the next person to get off, and let the attendant help the net group on. It came to a stop just a few moments later, and then, they were suspended in the air again. 

“I wasn’t just going to run from you, Amity.” Luz told her, trying to keep her voice firm. “You’re my friend. I wouldn’t ever do that.” 

“I know, I know, I didn’t mean to suggest you would.” Amity quickly clarified, her hands uncoupling themselves for a moment to hold in front of her, in an effort to try and visually reassure Luz. “I just… I wouldn’t have blamed you if you did.” 

A brief moment of silence followed. 

“...You didn’t have to.” She eventually carried on. “You could have just said that I’d made things too awkward to be around each other. Or that you just didn’t feel the way I did. You could have just… Pretended that it didn’t happen. That would have been easier, and it would have made sense.” 

“Amity…”

“...Anyone else,” Her hands began to grip onto the dress around her knees, “Anyone else would have wanted to stay away from me. After what I told you… How I feel about you… After telling you I wanted you to stay. Anyone else would have wanted to get as far away from me as possible. They’d think I was a control freak, or… Something. But… But you’ve put up with it. You’ve… Put up with me.” 

Something about that term rubbed Luz the wrong way. Like Amity saw herself as a burden. Saw her feelings as a burden. 

They weren’t. 

“...I didn’t ‘put up with you’, Amity.” Luz tried to reassure her, though she was curious and unsure where Amity was going with any of this. “I… I like spending time with you. I like being around you.” 

“I’m... Explaining this all really badly, then.” Amity sighed, and pinched at the bridge of her nose for a few seconds. The dress is wheel moved and then stopped again. “I just - I wanted to say thank you. For putting up with all of this. For coming here with me. For… For even considering… Whatever it is you feel about me. I was… So, so scared that you were going to run away, or hide from me, or pretend I didn’t even exist or - Or something else, and I… I don’t think I could have handled that. But you didn’t, and it...” 

She forced her eyes to meet with Luz’s. 

“..It means… So much to me that you didn’t do that Luz. So… Whatever it is that you decide you feel or want to do... Thank you.” Her lips curled into a smile again. “Thank you for coming here with me. And… Thank you, for being my friend.” 

Again, the Ferris wheel moved. 

The way that Luz felt about Amity - There was something there. Something that Luz could almost  _ see _ . Still locked away in its box, waiting for a key to open it up, and finally make sense out of all of this for her. 

Hell, at this point, it wouldn’t even need a key - Just a sharp kick to break the lock and just force the thing open. And if Luz knew how to do that right then and there, she would do. 

“...You don’t need to thank me, Amity.” To be honest, Luz was at a slight loss as to what to say. Given the way life went for her on Earth… She never imagined that someone would be thanking  _ her _ for being their friend. 

It felt more like she should be the one thanking Amity. 

“...But… You’re welcome.” She didn’t realize it, but her hands reached forwards, and held Amity’s hands in hers. They were small, and soft. “And… Thank you for being my friend too.” 

That was the best that she could think to say.

Both of them remained on the wheel in silence as it stopped a few more times. There wasn’t anything more to say - They were both comfortable, and could just enjoy the moment. Luz’s lips had curled into a shaky smile, and Amity’s remained throughout. 

All Luz could do was mentally scream at the box that wouldn’t open- That wouldn’t just let them figure this all out then and there. Amity deserved that much. 

The moment was ended by the sound of ringing - Heavy, loud ringing, that filled the entire air, and sent waves through both Luz’s and Amity’s bodies. Made their insides feel like they were vibrating at the sound of the noise. 

“What the - “ Luz jumped up - Literally - In surprise. 

It was almost like being up close to a school bell, only they weren’t near such a bell - And in all the time that she had been here, Luz hadn’t once heard a school bell, or any other sort of public facility use any sort of bell - The Boiling Isles version just  _ screamed.  _

As the bell continued to ring, Luz could see groups of people stopping whatever it was they were doing, glancing at one another, and starting to make their way in a single direction - As far as she could tell, that was towards the source of the noise, which was also the direction of the Bonesborough main plaza. 

Some, notably, didn’t head in that direction at all, and instead just watched other people heading off, or waving at friends as they separated from their groups. From what Luz could see, there didn’t seem to be a pattern in the people who were following the ringing noise - It almost looked to be completely random. 

“It’s for the Passover Chorus.” 

Amity had gotten up, and stood next to Luz. She was facing the direction of the ringing, and her hands had gripped onto the window of the cart. They had gripped on, and Luz could see them digging into the side of it. Amity’s expression, what little she could see of it, was one that was… The best word was apprehension. Like when someone knew something had been coming, and now it was finally here. It was easy to recognise - Luz had felt like that herself before Amity had arrived at the Owl House. 

“That’s… You said that you wanted to take part in that, right?” Luz asked, remembering their earlier conversation. 

“Yeah.” Amity nodded in response, not taking her eyes off the direction of the ringing. 

“...Do you still want to go?” She already knew the answer, but Luz wanted to make sure. 

This time, Amity turned around to look at Luz. She inspected the Human’s face for a moment, like she was looking for signs of hesitation, or reluctance, or some indicator that Luz wasn’t willing to go along with whatever this would end up being.

She found none. 

“...I do.” She nodded again. 

Luz nodded back. “Okay.” 

A silent pause followed. 

“...We’re not gonna end up like, fighting monsters or something are we?” Luz asked, when she realised she still had no idea what in the world she was supposed to expect of this ‘Chorus’. “Cause I’m fine with doing that for you, but I don’t have any Glyphs, so - “

“It won’t involve any fighting.” Amity said, almost bursting into outright laughter at how easily and cluelessly Luz could cut through tension when she wanted to. It was actually impressive how easily she managed to do it without even trying. 

A short time later, their skull-capsule eventually did it’s full rotation, and the person who ran the ride let the two of them off. Almost as soon as they had been let off, Amity grabbed hold of Luz’s hand, and began to lead her in the direction of the ringing bell.

To actually get to the source, they had to weave in and out of the crowds a fair bit, as those who weren’t headed towards the Chorus still filled the streets. They were able to navigate their way there though, and eventually, they made it to the main plaza. 

Either there had been far fewer people than Luz had thought who actually went towards the plaza, or she had vastly overestimated the number of people who had actually headed this way to begin with - There were maybe three or four dozen people who had actually ended up there, and they were all separated into small groups or two or more people, all seeming to be separated by at least a meter or two. Still a fair number of people, but not as many as the Human had thought there would be. She realized this as she did a quick scan for Willow and Boscha - If they were here, she didn’t see them. 

All these people though, they all just seemed to be standing around though, like they were waiting for something. Three dozen people, all just stood there, apparently waiting for something to happen - Luz couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at the whole situation. 

Turning to Amity, who seemed to be looking around just as much as everyone else, Luz began to ask, “So, what’s supposed to be - “ 

A flash of bright, blue light filled the area, making both girls, and everyone around them, shield their eyes for a few seconds as the light dissipated. When they were able to see again, the centre of the plaza was now filled, with a man standing in the absolute most center, armed with a microphone, that was connected to nearby speaker systems. 

_ “A happy twilight to all those gathered here - Although for many of you, I suspect you wish it were under better circumstances.”  _

All Luz could do was blink -  _ Principal Bump?! _

What the heck was he doing here? And what the heck was going on?

_ “As one of the most…” _ There was a notable pause in his speaking. “...Senior  _ members of our local community - And given that there’s a good chance I’ve taught all of you at some point or another - I’ve been asked to handle this evening's Passover Chorus.”  _

People around her, Luz noticed, were giving Bump their full attention - In her mind, she likened it to a holiday speech back on Earth - Like when a mayor would do a speech before flipping on the city lights for a celebration of some sort. That made sense, she supposed. She faced Bump again, and listened intently. 

_ “At least once every decade, we are faced with a Valeween invasion, as we have for as long as we have been able to record history on the Isles. The Cherubim have arrived and harassed us long before the Emperor ever arrived, and brought his benevolent wisdom to us.”  _ Luz had to scoff at that.  _ “In all my years, I have witnessed dozens upon dozens of Valeween invasions, and I wish that I were able to tell you why the Cherubim chose to attack us. But I cannot, because for all the advancements made in the last few centuries, this is a mystery that we still don’t know the answers of. But what I can share with you is the history of such an event.”  _

Bump cleared his throat, and continued. 

“ _ When the first Valeween nights fell upon the Isles, Witches held together in small villages, that would become overwhelmed and overrun by the Cherubim as they attacked. But as the Isles became more and more interconnected, and we learned about other villages, we began to join together for protection. And as we did so, we learned about one another. We made friends. We fell in love, and began families with one another. And when the Cherubim attacked again, we had our new friends by our sides. We learned to fight them off, and protect one another. And this process repeated itself, from the Skull, to the Knee, and dozens of towns were founded this way. “ _

For a moment, Bump scratched his head. 

_ “Er - How our beloved town of Bonesborough came to be is lost on me as of right now - ”  _ He spoke very quickly, and then slowed down.  _ “ - But, it brings me a great joy to be able to say that of all the towns I have been in for these nights, that Bonesborough has always pulled together and held firm better than any other town on the Isles.”  _

Everyone took a moment to clap - To celebrate this, in the grand scheme of things, small victory. It was a point of pride for everyone. 

_ “But, as you all know - The impact the Cherubim leave upon us doesn’t end when they do. You are all here because you have either been forced to reveal your honest feelings towards one another against your will, or have been the recipient of such a revelation.”  _

Both Luz and Amity stole a brief glance at one another. That… Went without saying. And to be honest it surprised Luz that it went without saying for everyone around them too - It was still a small percentage of everyone in Bonesborough, and she barely recognised any of them, but still. 

Apparently this happened enough that this - Whatever it was - Was necessary. 

_ “The damage that this has caused in the past has been immeasurable - And this is why the Passover Festivus came into being. As a way to mend those ties, to act on and accept, or to reject them and move on. To understand that after today, we return to normalcy, and begin turning the wheels of society once more. And with that in mind - “  _

Bump twirled his finger, and formed a Magic Circle - All around him, circles opened up, and people began to rise from the floor. 

All of them were equipped with various musical instruments. Luz just blinked again. Hadn’t Amity said that this didn’t have anything to do with songs? 

_ “ - I would like to welcome you all to the Passover Chorus - And I hope that you are able to figure out your path forwards from here on out.”  _

The band began to play - It was odd. A weird mixture of what Luz could understand as classical music, and the Boiling Isles equivalent of classical music all blurred into one. Metallic, almost - Not like heavy metal on Earth, but like, using metal as an instrument in and of itself, almost? They were using instruments that Luz had never seen before, and almost certainly some kind kind of Bard Magic. 

But whatever it was, it had rhythm. It has a close beat. It was nice to listen to. Relaxing. 

In the corner of Luz’s eye though, she saw another couple of people moving. Her head turned. 

_ They were dancing.  _

Not like a solo, rave-party type of dancing - Slow dancing. 

Like a waltz. 

Her eyes darted around - Everyone was doing the same. They had reached for their partners, and began to hold them, and move along with the music. Some were closer than others. Some only joined hands, while others were more willing to embrace one another. 

That was what this was. The Passover Chorus wasn’t a song - It was a  _ dance. _

“Luz?” 

Turning to Amity, Luz saw the Witch had her hand gently extended out, offering it to the Human. Her expression was a mixed one - One of anxiety and nervousness, and one of an almost faux-but-not-faux confidence. Her posture was loose, and soft. She wasn’t trying to be forceful. 

She was offering. 

Asking. 

“...May I?” 

For just a second, Luz stayed perfectly still. All of this reminded her of Grom - Only this time, there wasn’t a threat to face down to spur her into action. There weren't any hidden feelings. There wasn’t… 

...Anything that made this situation like Grom, really. It just reminded her of it. 

The difference now was, all Luz had to do was act on what she felt. 

So for just a few seconds, Luz just stared at the outreached hand. 

And then, she accepted it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DEAR GOD THIS CHAPTER WAS A PAIN I DID NOT PLAN THIS CHAPTER IN THE SLIGHTEST IT JUST NEEDED TO HAPPEN TO CONNECT THE NEXT CHAPTER AAAAAAAAA -
> 
> A’IGHT - This might take the award for the biggest chapter on Valeween so far - I dunno, I’ve not checked, but it was a difficult chapter for me to write - BUT now we’re in the realm of “Quartz actually planned these final two chapters, the mad bastard” SO - We’re gonna hopefully be getting those out a lot sooner than we got this out
> 
> Uni has started back up for me, so I’m back on the multiple things going on train, but I’m gonna try and wrap this story up as soon as possible - Hopefully you understand! 
> 
> I’ll see you soon, for the next chapter : )


	19. The Chorus

It was nearly impossible to properly describe what exactly the music that filled the plaza sounded like for Luz. The instruments used were ones that she had never even seen before. 

From what she could tell from the distance that she was at from them, one of them looked like a weird hybrid combination of a harp and a drum-set. Another seemed like a trombone, but with cords on one side, and piano-keys on the other, which extended and retracted like an accordion did. One seemed to be plant-like, almost - As in, one of the band members was just holding a plant, and that was making some sort of music, and Luz wouldn’t even pretend to even begin to understand how that one worked. 

In true Boiling Isles fashion, one of the instruments seemed like it was alive, armed with a pair of wings and fangs, and made noises by the scratching of what looked like fur in certain places. It was hard to know if the instrument was just an object or an actual living creature. Or, again, in true Boiling Isles fashion, if it was both. Luz had never seen an instrument quite like it before. 

She’d never seen any of these instruments in Bard Classes, for that matter. She had to assume they were some sort of antique type of instrument - Maybe Valeween-specific traditional instruments that only got brought out for the Festivus and the Passover Chorus. It wasn’t like that would be out of character for the Isles. 

The sounds they made sounded like metal - That was the closest thing that Luz could describe them as. Like when someone struck a piece of sheet metal, and the sound reverberated as the substance wobbled in hand. But it was so much more refined than that, like it was carefully given purpose over hours of crafting and testing, like a guitar that had been perfectly tuned. The music was slow and precise, careful, and deliberate. It was music, but it wasn’t anything that Luz could begin to describe by comparing it to Earth genres or instruments. 

Classical music lessons - Or at least the Bard Track’s equivalent - had taught Luz to recognise at least some, though not all, of the techniques present in the music. The patterns, the way it sped up and slowed down in small, isolated parts, and the way the music almost led those around it from one move into another. It’s rhythms were designed to be for people to dance with each other. It made it easier for her to realize where the beats were, where the rhythm was taking her, and when to move her feet and hands.

And this wasn’t the first time she had danced with Amity. 

But it was the first time that things were this slow. This… The only real word for it was intimate, no matter what feelings that word sparked within Luz’s chest. 

This was an intimate dance, and the way that she and Amity held one another felt just as intimate too. 

Neither of them held the other as closely as they had held one another at Grom - One hand held one another, while Luz’s left hand rested on Amity’s waist. Amity’s right hand on Luz’s left shoulder. They were about as far away from one another as they could physically be while still maintaining this position, mostly out of the lack of certainty as to how close the other wanted them to be. 

Dancing itself was easy - It was the feelings that were being ignited that made the whole process more difficult. 

Their movements were slow. Simple, basic, and deliberate. Nowhere near as energetic, complex, and improvised as Grom. 

But it was nice. 

“...It’s weird.” Luz eventually said, after they had danced for a few moments in near complete silence. Everything else was almost silent around her - No one else was speaking, and the only sound came from the music. A part of her wanted to speak just to break the monotony of the silence, though she did actually have an observation to make. 

“Huh? What is?” Amity asked. There was a slight hitch in her voice, like she was trying, very intentionally, to focus on the dance, and nothing else, and Luz speaking had thrown her off that focus. 

“The way you guys dance here.” A brief pause followed. “Well, this kind of dance, I mean. You have similar dances to what we do on Earth.” 

“We do?” An eyebrow raised on the Witch’s face. The slight hitch seemed to be gone now. 

“Uh huh.” Luz looked at their joint hands, and nodded. Like she was leading Amity to look as well. “It’s kind of a… Dance you’re just expected to learn how to do, for like, certain kinds of weddings, and formal parties and that kind of stuff. We call it a waltz.” 

“It’s…. Kind of the same thing here. Only we call it a vals” Amity blinked, and looked at the joined hands herself. “They even sound kind of similar. Weird.” 

“Isn’t it?” 

“Yeah… It… Must be one of those things that travelled between Earth and the Demon Realm.” Amity suggested. “Like Azura did. That’s something both the Human world and the Isles share. Maybe a Witch in the past went to your world, learned this dance, and then brought it back.”

“Or vice versa.” Luz proposed. “Maybe a Human visited the Isles a long time ago, and you guys taught them how to waltz? It’s not like I’m  _ literally  _ the first Human to ever visit the Isles, right?” 

“I don’t know of any others, and I don’t think any of the history books I’ve read ever mentioned another Human visiting the Isles…” 

Amity mulled it over for a few seconds, like she was trying to remember if she had ever seen anything to the contradictory. Given as much time as she had spent reading books, it was a lot of information to cover, though she went over it very quickly. 

Instead, she wound up shaking her head when she realized she didn’t recall anything like that. “...But I doubt you’re the very first Human to set foot on the Boiling Isles. The first one to learn Magic, maybe, but to actually come here?... I don’t know.” 

A few seconds passed. They both continued to move in sync with one another. Honestly, by this point, Luz would have expected one of them to have stepped on the others toes - Not even out of a lack of skill, but because of nerves, more than anything. 

“...I wonder which side came up with this dance?” Amity pondered aloud after a short while. “The Human side, or the Witches side?” 

“...Maybe it was both.” 

As they spoke to one another, their movements became more and more fluid, and they synced up almost perfectly with one another. The way that they spoke to one another only assisted them in getting more and more comfortable like this, learning one another’s pace, setting a rhythm, and responding to small, subtle movements - Kind of like how when two people walked and spoke alongside one another, their footsteps would sync up - Like they knew the way that their partner would move almost the moment their partner knew themselves. 

Whatever nerves they had, or thoughts were spinning through their heads, it didn’t translate to poor performance. They were both matching each other steps one-for-one. Almost perfectly. 

In the centre of the plaza, Bump and the orchestra still stood, watching it all unfold, amidst dozens of other dancers. Luz could just see their outlines over Amity’s shoulder, but barely paid them any mind. The music changed slightly, and began to play a slightly different tune. A bit higher in pitch and in note, but was still slow, and methodical all the same. 

“Huh?” Amity blinked, confused. “How could it be both sides?” 

Luz turned her eyes back towards Amity’s face. She was almost certain that they were closer than they had been before. “Well, I mean… Back on Earth, there’s a lot of old stories about Witches who used to live in cabins in the woods, who made potions for people who were willing to make deals with them, or would curse people, or… Just do Witch-y stuff, I guess.” 

Admittedly, that thought was only just occurring to her now, but now that Luz thought about it, it was possible that the Witches of the Boiling Isles could explain a lot of the old stories about Witchcraft on Earth. There had to be thousands of them throughout thousands of cultures and regions of the planet. Maybe the Isles was a common thread.

The smallest laugh escaped Amity’s lips. “Should I be worried about the way my people are represented in your world?” 

A slightly awkward expression made its way onto Luz’s face as she remembered the many, many,  _ many  _ horror stories about Witches she had heard of growing up. “Er… Don’t worry about it?” 

“...I wasn’t before, but now I kind of am.” Amity blinked a couple of times, and an eyebrow raised again. 

As they danced, they switched their standing positions - Luz now had her back towards Bump and the orchestra, while Amity could now see them fairly clearly if she chose to focus on them. Naturally though, she didn’t. She focused entirely on Luz. 

“A - Anyway!” The Human said quickly. “My - My point was… I don’t know. Maybe a Witch came to Earth, and met a Human, and they became friends, and came up with a dance together? And when the Witch came back here, they taught it to everyone?” 

Amity’s golden eyes -  _ Luz was not sure why she took note of the colour right now, of all times _ \- darted outwards for a few seconds, before they returned to looking at Luz’s. “It’s… Possible, I guess.” She slowly said, like she was seeing how the words sounded coming out of her mouth. “I don’t know how likely it is, but… Maybe.” 

A small smile appeared, and it made Luz feel things again. 

“It’s a nice thought.” 

“It - It’s… It’s kinda like a fairy tale, huh?” 

“...A what?” 

“Just - They’re a Human thing.” Luz told her, though she had to pause for a moment to figure out how exactly to explain the  _ concept of a fairy tale _ . “Er…. They’re like… They’re like folk stories, I guess? Only they usually had Magic in them? Or Magic creatures or… Stuff like that.” 

“I thought the Human Realm didn’t have any Magic?” 

“It doesn’t, but people used to believe that it existed on Earth. It made explaining all the weird things that happened to them easier, I guess.” A lightbulb went off in her head as she realised a point of comparison, “They’re kinda like those stories that you read to kids in the library.”

Amity hummed and nodded her understanding, not saying anything more. The point had been illustrated for her fairly clearly. 

Both of them continued to dance, keeping in rhythm with the music. It changed again after a short while, and became something a little bit faster, and Luz realized that she had no idea if when the music changed, if it was the start of a new song, or if it was just another section of one long, collective song. She could recognise that this was the Boiling Isles equivalent of classical music, but that didn’t mean she could identify if the new sounds indicated a new song or not. Bard Magic wasn’t her best subject. 

A few seconds passed, and then Luz realized that it hadn’t been a figment of her imagination - She and Amity  _ were closer _ than they had been before. 

How and when it had happened, she couldn’t say for sure. She hadn’t intentionally stepped closer to Amity, and if Amity had intentionally stepped closer to her, she hadn’t seen it. Her arms no longer had to reach out as far as they could go before they reached Amity’s waist - Now her arms were able to bend slightly, not needing to extend as far. 

The realisation that she was this bit closer to Amity made her go red in the face, but Luz didn’t mind at all. Not really. 

It felt nice to be this close to Amity. It felt right. It felt… 

“...Sorry I didn’t tell you what the Chorus was.” Amity said after a short while. Luz felt the grip on her shoulder tighten slightly. The Witch looked away slightly.

“H - Hey, it’s okay.” Luz told her. Her hand on the other girl's waist guided Amity away from bumping into two other dancers that had come too close, and in doing so, pulled them that bit closer to one another again. “It - You said that it was bad luck to talk about it before now. It was like how Gus and Willow didn’t want to talk about the Cherubim that one time.” 

“Yeah… But that only really works if you believe in the Chorus superstition.” 

Luz blinked, and Amity looked at her face. 

“...I don’t.” 

Oh.  _ Oh. _

“...Oh.” Luz blushed, and felt her cheeks warm up. Suddenly, Amity’s specificity regarding the Chorus on their walk to the Festivus made much more sense. It took the Human a short while to find her words again. “…You er… You did say this was… The one thing you knew you wanted to do here…” 

“...Yeah..” 

She had wanted to dance with Luz. That was what she had wanted, more than anything at the Festivus. 

“Were - “ Involuntarily, Luz gulped. “...Were you afraid I’d say no?” 

“I… I wanted it to be a surprise? I thought it would be…” Amity stopped talking for a solid ten seconds. “...I don’t know. I just wanted it to be a surprise. I thought it would be… I guess special?” 

It had to have been one of those things where, in Amity’s head, it made sense, but when she had to actually say it out loud, she didn’t know how to explain it. That described a… Surprisingly large amount of Luz’s life in general, honestly. 

“Well… You got the surprise part down.” Luz said, allowing herself a single laugh. Maybe it was just her nerves flaring up, but there  _ was  _ humor to be had in this whole mess. 

Another few seconds passed in relative silence. Once again, Luz had to guide Amity away from crashing into other dancers - It seemed like whoever the heck had ended up surrounding them, they weren’t super aware of their surroundings. But Luz barely paid that fact any more attention than she needed to. 

Something about getting to guide Amity like this was... Exhilarating. There wasn’t another word for it. It just sent a  _ rush _ throughout her. 

A rush she wanted more of. 

“...I think I was afraid, a little.” Amity eventually said. “That… That you wouldn’t want to. And that’s… That wasn’t fair to you. You said that you don’t know how you feel about me, and I…” She trailed off again. 

_ She wanted to be selfish. Just for this one thing.  _ Luz understood. 

“...Well, hey, don’t worry about it.” She told the Witch, smiling as she spoke. “I’m… I’m having fun here.” There was no lie, either. That was the honest truth. “I… I like this.” 

Once again, Amity looked up to face Luz. For a moment, she looked at Luz’s eyes - Really looked at them. Like she was searching for something - But whatever it was that she was looking for, she evidently wasn’t able to find it. 

So when she saw the smile, one appeared on her own lips. 

“...How do you keep doing that?” 

“Doing what?” Luz blinked. 

“Every time I feel like I’ve screwed up, you always make me feel better. But you… You don’t ever lie to me to spare my feelings either.” That must have been what she had been looking for. A sign that Luz was lying. ”Every time you make me feel better, you’re being genuine at the same time...”

Again, Amity looked into Luz’s eyes, and Luz could  _ swear  _ that she felt the moment like it was tangible. 

“...It’s one of the… Reasons I… Love you.” 

_ ‘You think that Amity made a mistake by falling for you.’ _

_ It was… Hard not to feel like it was. _

_ The vision of her that Amity had of her. _

_...She wasn’t sure she could live up to that.  _

_ And was afraid that Amity had made a mistake in thinking that she could. _

_ ‘You know exactly how you feel about her, don’t you.’ _

_ Don’t you. _

Luz’s heart beat. Hard. And her breathing quickened. Her face felt red, but her gut felt like ice. 

She understood it now. 

That box in her mind. It wasn't that she needed a key to unlock it. It wasn’t even that she was the one who had locked it. 

_ It was that she was the one who was locked  _ inside _ it.  _

She knew how she felt - But she couldn’t face it. 

Couldn’t even  _ say it _ . Even  _ think it _ . Couldn’t even find the words because she had hidden them so well. 

Because she was terrified of what she would do. 

How she would fail. 

_ How she would screw this all up.  _

How often could she pretend that the way she was treated at school wasn’t, in some way, her fault? How could she look at every interaction there, see how they always ended with her being the one on her own, and not realizing that she was the one common thread in all those interactions? 

How long until that happened again? And if she even let herself acknowledge how she felt…

...How long until she did that to Amity? 

And Amity deserved so… So… So much better than that. 

She couldn’t do this to Amity. 

She… She couldn’t bear it herself. 

_ She. Couldn’t do this. _

“...I can’t…”

Her hands let go of Amity, and she took a single step away from her. The look that Amity gave her broke her heart. But when the tears started to fall from her own face, the look Amity had changed, instantly. 

Like she knew. Like she could see straight through the Human. 

She couldn’t be here. She  _ couldn’t. _

All Luz could do was run. 

It was like she went blind for a few moments - She barely even realized when she had turned and run, as quickly as she was physically capable of doing, away from Amity. Away from the plaza. Away from the eyes that she could  _ feel _ turning on her as she left. 

As she ran, she barely even remembered running past people - All she could figure was that she either completely blacked out everyone around her as she ran, or they moved aside as she came shooting towards them. 

Red hot tears filled what little of her vision she had, though she tried everything in her power to hold them back - She wanted to just stop, and scream, and let them all out, but she couldn’t - She  _ couldn’t! _ She needed to be away from here. Away from Amity. 

Before she shattered what little illusion of her would be left after  _ this. _

If Amity called after her, she didn’t hear it. 

She just ran.

* * *

How exactly Luz managed to find her way onto the path to the Owl House, she wasn’t entirely sure. She hadn’t even been  _ trying _ to get there - She just wanted to be somewhere that was away from people. 

Maybe she had spent so long on the Isles that she could just navigate the place while she was practically blind, and had subconsciously just tried to get back to the wooden shack she called her home in this realm. 

Or maybe it was just blind luck. 

Honestly, she didn’t know, and she didn’t even care to know at this point. She had just run - Run until she couldn’t run anymore, and until her legs ached and she ran out of breath. 

From then on, she just walked. Slowly, and honestly, aimlessly. She had no particular direction in mind. Her walking speed had slowed down to a crawl ever since she stopped running, and she had no idea how long she had been running for. Her feet dragged along the ground, kicking up dirt with every step. That was all that she watched as she walked along, and her head hung low as well. There was no one around her though, thank God, so one could see her like this. 

For a reason that was completely beyond her, she was trying to hold back the tears.

Behind her, she could hear the sounds of the Festivus still ongoing. Music and conversation, but it was all distant now, becoming one big, indistinguishable blur. People who had themselves together more than she did, who weren’t going to screw everything up for themselves, or hurt or disappoint the people they cared about. 

She wanted to take solace in the fact that she’d made the right choice - Or at least, what she thought was the right choice - That she knew that Amity, whatever she saw in her, was mistaken. Was wrong. That Amity would realize that before long. That she had made the right choice. 

That this was for the best, for Amity. For herself.

Even if it were true though, it didn’t make Luz feel even remotely better. In fact, it just made her feel worse - 

Keeping the tears held in ended up being a bad decision - Luz’s vision had been blurred, and because of how she was hanging her head, her peripheral vision was already far more limited than it otherwise normally was. These factors combined, and meant that she didn’t spot the dip in the path, and tripped on it, falling face first into the ground. There was an unceremonious thud as she hit the floor. 

Compared to only just last week getting her leg chewed up and permanently scarred by a Cherubim, this didn’t hurt in the slightest. It just stung for a few seconds. 

That was all she needed for the floodgates to open though. 

Tears flowed freely now, and she just remained on the ground, in a quiet, sobbing mess for a short while, wanting to scream at herself for all of this - For burying all of this so deep in the first place. For not being able to understand what it was she was feeling because she had buried these feelings so deep. For not being able to figure them out sooner, so that she could process them and figure out how to hold them back before now.

Before all of this. 

And even now, she couldn’t bring herself to just say it - To just even  _ think it _ \- Even though she knew what it was, and even though a part of her knew now -  _ Just knew _ \- that really, she had known for a while now.

Picking herself up, she decided that she didn’t want to go to the Owl House right now - The last thing she wanted right now was to deal with Hooty, or King and Lilith if they had gotten back or go somewhere Amity might find her or - Just, anyone. She didn’t want to be around anyone right now. 

Instead, still trying to wipe tears out of her eyes, she made her way off the path, and into the tree line, hoping that said trees and the accompanying plant life would make it impossible to spot from the path. 

After just a short while, she found a spot that she decided was as good as any other, slumped against the nearest tree, and held her head in her hands, and buried both between her knees. Her outfit was dirty now, and there might have been a tear in it, but that was the absolute last thing that was on her mind right now. 

Finally, she allowed herself to just  _ cry. _

None of it had been a lie. None of it had been an act. Luz had meant every word that she had said after Valeween, and during the Festivus, and she knew that Amity had meant every word that she had said too. Luz had enjoyed her time with Amity - It felt just so… Right. So universally, unrestrictedly right that it genuinely shook her. Every look, every laugh, every smile that Amity had done, the feelings that they sparked in the Human - Those were real. 

They were so real. So real that for a short while, Luz thought that it would be okay to feel like this. That everything would work itself out. 

And she had wanted it to. She wanted it to work out. To be able to stay with Amity. To dance with her. To be able to hold her. To…. 

...She had wanted that more than she’d wanted anything else in her entire life. 

_ She wanted it to. _

But it wouldn’t be  _ fair _ . It wouldn’t be _ right _ . She couldn’t - 

“L - Luz! There you are!” 

It felt both like a jolt of electricity to the heart, and like a dagger made of ice cutting straight into the soul when Luz heard Amity’s voice.

When Luz looked up at Amity and saw her face, she saw an expression that was a mixture of apprehension, hurt, concern, and confusion. She leaned against the nearest tree to Luz, relying on it for support. She was out of breath too - Her face was red, she was sweating slightly, and taking short, shallow breaths. She had run, evidentially, just like Luz had. 

Fully realising that she was there filled Luz with dread. 

“A - Amity?” As quickly as she could, Luz tried to wipe the tears and sweat and dirt and whatever else was there away from her eyes, even though it was completely pointless to do so - Amity had seen them back at the Festivus, and there was no way that she hadn’t seen them now. 

If she had the energy to, she would have gotten up and tried to put distance between her and the other girl, but she didn’t. Her legs felt weak. She genuinely felt if she got onto her feet, she’d just fall over immediately and slam straight into the ground again. 

So instead, she stumbled over her words. “What - Where did - How did you - “

For a moment, Amity just looked at Luz, like she barely knew what to say, or how to respond to… Any of what had just happened. Maybe that was why she opted to actually explain the question she knew Luz was trying to ask. 

“It’s… It’s not hard to track down a Human running and…  _ Crying _ , through the middle of the Festivus. When I lost sight of you, I just… Asked people if they saw where you went.” 

A particular strain on her voice was noticeable when she said ‘Crying.’ Like the word itself hurt her. 

“...And… Then I heard you when I came this way…” 

“Amity, I - “ What was she supposed to say? Luz didn’t even know where to start - Amity deserved an answer, yes, and Luz was angry at herself for running away rather than explaining herself, but she didn’t know if she was strong enough to give one. The tears that kept rolling down her cheeks made it even harder to speak even small sentences. “I - I’m sorry, I - “ 

“It’s okay.” Amity told her almost immediately. Her voice was quiet. 

She walked across the gap between the two of them, and knelt in front of Luz. When Luz eventually brought herself to look up at her, there was a smile on her face, but it was so obviously fake that Luz could hardly stand it, and wanted to yell at herself for being the reason it was there in the first place. 

The expression on Amity’ face betrayed how she really felt. Luz’s head buried itself in her hands again.

“I… I get it.” The Witch tried to assure the Human, but her voice wavered as she tried. “You… You... “ The words wouldn’t come for her, either. She stammered, and they got caught in her throat. She was trying to be far stronger about this than she was. “...You did more than I… Ever thought you would for me, Luz. You - You don’t need to apologize for not feeling the way I do.” 

Her voice continued to waver, more and more as she spoke. She was trying to hide how hurt she was, but was trying to comfort her hurt friend anyway. 

Because that was just the sort of person that she was. 

“You… You didn’t have to do any of this. You didn’t need to go to the Festivus with me, and you didn’t need to spend so much time trying to figure it out… But you did.”

Luz couldn’t stand it. 

Couldn’t stand hearing Amity’s voice like this. Couldn’t stand her thinking this was because she didn’t - 

“You did and you didn’t need to, and I - “

_ “It’s not that!”  _

It hadn’t meant to be as sudden as it was, nor as loud as it was, but Luz’s voice was sharp and loud all the same. She looked up at Amity again, no longer even attempting to hide her face or her expression. Her eyes stung though, so she needed to wipe them anyway, and try to at least get a grip on herself, just a little bit. 

For her part though, Amity’s expression had changed from one of poorly concealed heartbreak and worry, to surprise, and extreme confusion. For a few seconds, her mind was blank, but when she finally registered what Luz had said, and the implications of it - She found herself far more confused than anything else. 

All she could do was sit there, and wait while Luz tried to calm herself down so that she could speak. 

Just under a minute passed in relative silence, before Luz managed to find her voice again, shaky as it was, and interrupted by lumps in her throat, and the need for short, sharp breaths. “It… It’s not that, Amity. It’s not… I - “

She bit her lip. No matter how much she wanted to, she just  _ couldn’t say it. _

“A - Amity you - You can’t - You… This doesn’t happen to me, Amity. It  _ can’ _ t happen - People don’t - They don’t - Don’t like me like you do! It doesn’t happen because - Because there are reasons not to! I’m a weirdo! A freak! I - I do stupid things and I get the people I care about into dangerous messes because I don’t think things through!”

The more she spoke, the louder her voice got, and the more blunt she got. She began to speak quicker, taking shorter and shorter breaths. 

“Everyone back on Earth - They saw that! They all saw what kind of person I was - I can’t - “ Her voice hitched, briefly. “ - How many times can that happen without it being my fault?! But here - Here everything is different! I - I have friends here, people go along with all my stuff and I - I get to learn stuff that I want to learn about and I -“ 

A gulp. 

“ - And somehow I haven’t screwed it all up yet!” It was a constant fear that Luz had - That she was going to ruin everything one day. That everything that had come to make this place her home would fall apart because of the way that she was. 

That was why she had been so lonely on Earth. It wasn’t anyone else’s actions. It was hers. She was the one who made a big display of everything - She was the one who freaked people out with her antics - She was the one who unleashed snakes on everyone for God's sake! 

_ How wasn’t it her fault? _

“I - I try, Amity, I _ try so hard to keep myself from screwing it up but it’s going to happen eventually and -“ _

For just a few seconds, Luz stopped herself and her rambling, just long enough to see the way that Amity was looking at her. 

It was so hard to describe.

She was listening, and she wasn’t interrupting at all, but she looked like she was one part horrified by what she was hearing, and the other part was ready to burst into tears of her own. 

Luz looked away again. 

“...A - And I don’t… I don’t know what you see in me, Amity, but you… You…” 

Her teeth bit against her inner lip. 

“...You’re wrong about me.” 

For the first time in a while, Amity spoke. Her voice was quiet, and soft. “What do you mean, Luz? I don’t understand what you’re talking about.” 

“I… I - I don’t know what you even see in me, Amity - I don’t - I don’t  _ get it! _ I - I’m not smart, I’m not some sort of prodigy, I’m not - I’m not special! I don’t get what it is you even like about me, what you even see in me and I - I can’t - I can’t be what you think I am and you - “ 

The words choked in her throat - Almost literally this time. It felt like they had all come up at once and made her unable to speak. She needed to take a few seconds. 

“...And you’re going to see that soon and I can’t handle watching you realize what a screw up I am…. How much I’m going to disappoint you - And I don’t want to but that’s going to happen! And I don’t…” 

A slight pause followed. And when she spoke again, it was in a whisper that was barely audible. 

“...I don’t want to hurt you.” 

In a way, that was what all of this had come down to. Why she wanted to hide these feelings she had away. Because she knew - She knew - that even with Amity feeling the way that she did, Luz was going to hurt her some day. And she didn’t want to do that. She couldn’t bear that. 

And it would hurt her too, and she… Didn’t think she could handle that either. 

Amity didn’t deserve that. 

“You… You deserve better than that, Amity. You…” The words nearly made Luz choke, but she forced them out of a dry throat. “...You deserve better than me. You - “

“I don’t _ want _ better than you!” 

For the first time in this conversation, Amity raised her voice. She had listened to all of this, listened to Luz tearing into herself for no good reason, listened to Luz just not understanding what it was that made Amity feel the way that she did about the Human - Listening to her not even refuting those feelings or say she couldn’t return them, but instead talking about how she didn’t feel worthy of them - Didn’t feel like she could  _ accept  _ them because of some bizarre - 

In all honesty, Amity barely even understood what Luz was trying to say - Her mind and her words were a jumbled mess right now, which in of itself made sense since she was upset - But Amity couldn’t listen to any more of it.

_ She needed to speak - She couldn’t stand seeing Luz like this.  _

“What… What do you even mean by ‘Better’?” She asked, mostly rhetorically. Luz just looked back at her, like she’d been asked a trick question. “Smarter? Better at Magic? I don’t even know what you mean, and… And I don’t want that!” 

Luz just blinked. 

“I don’t want someone who’s - Who’s smarter than you are, or better at Magic than you are, or someone who - Who’s  _ special _ , whatever you mean by that! You’re all of those things, Luz! And even if you weren’t - “ 

For a second, Amity hesitated - Then she took Luz’s hands into her own. 

_ “ - None of that is even why I like you.”  _

That made Luz look at her again. 

“...I told you why I liked you, didn’t I?” Amity managed to get hold of her voice again, and toned it down. Her voice became soft and gentle again. Her thumbs ran over Luz’s hands. “Back by our Grom Tree. I told you back there.” 

A lot of things had been said there. Luz didn’t know which she - 

“That you’re the most  _ authentic person _ I’ve ever met.” She offered a gentle smile to the Human again. Her hand squeezed Luz’s as she spoke. “You’re the kindest person I know, and everything about it all is so, so genuine. Every time you say something to me, I know that you mean it. Everything you said back when you encouraged me to change, everything that you said by the Grom Tree, everything you said at the Festivus…” 

The smile faded briefly. 

“...Everything you said here…” 

It returned. 

“It’s all so…  _ Authentic,  _ in a way no one else is. You don’t hide anything about who you are, what you like, how you want to be or what you want to do and I  _ adore _ that about you. You… You inspire me. You make me want to be authentic in the same way that you are...” 

Again, her hands squeezed Luz’s hands, but now, Amity brought their hands together, so she could hold both of Luz’s hands between her own - Like they were precious gems to be protected from the cold. 

To Amity’s mind, they were. 

“I told you… There isn’t a single part of you I didn’t fall in love with. And I meant it, Luz. ‘Better’ wasn’t there trying to comfort me after our Witches Duel. ‘Better’ wasn’t there when I was terrified of facing Grom. ‘Better’ didn’t fight through hordes of Cherubim just to make sure I was okay, even after I yelled at them, because I was afraid they wanted to leave me on my own… That was  _ you _ .” 

The smile that was on Amity’s face spread, and her eyes conveyed such a fondness that it made Luz shiver. 

“You… You’re not perfect - I won’t pretend that you are. No one is. And… I know what it feels like when you’re expected to be perfect. You’re the person who made me realize how much that hurt the people around me… And… And you’re the person that made me realize how unhappy trying to live up to that made me. You don’t have to be perfect - I don’t want you to be perfect.” 

For some reason, in her mind, Luz could see the box now. The locked, sealed away box that she had found herself trapped within, where she hid all the words, all these feelings, all this… Everything that made this whole situation so complicated and painful. 

“I didn’t fall in love with perfect. I fell in love with Luz Noceda.” 

That box now unlocked. 

“I don’t  _ want  _ ‘better’, Luz. I want  _ you. _ ” 

Something about hearing that - Hearing that from Amity - Hearing all of that from Amity - It just clicked in Luz’s head. Made her…. She wasn’t sure what it did to her, really. Because all those fears, those anxieties, all those feelings that she wasn’t good enough, that beneath it all, she was basically just a huge mess, and that she was going to screw up at some point - All of that was still there. It didn’t vanish. 

But something about it spurred her. It was difficult to explain. Maybe it was because she knew how Amity felt about her. Maybe it was because the box in her mind was finally unlocked. 

_ Maybe it was just the fact it was Amity who was saying it.  _

Either way though, the box finally spilled open - And all the feelings that Luz had kept inside, everything that she had tried to repress, to hide, to make sure never saw the light of day - It all came tumbling out. 

She moved without thinking - Which was for the best, because if she did think for even a tenth of a nanosecond, she would have stopped herself. 

Practically pushing herself up from against the tree she had been leaned against, so that she was now on her knees, her hands clasped onto Amity’s shoulders. And without thinking about it, and only slowing down so she didn’t end up injuring the other girl, Luz leaned in, and before even Amity realised what was happening either, pressed her lips against Amity’s. 

All of the fears and anxieties, they all still existed - But in that one moment, that one single moment, Luz didn’t pay them even the slightest bit of attention. 

Because that moment, right then, for just that one moment, everything felt so overwhelmingly right that nothing else mattered, and her mind became clear. 

_ She loved Amity. _

That was what the box hid from her. That was where the words were. That was where all the feelings had been stored, where she had tried to hide them. That was why she didn’t feel the same way about Willow, or Gus, or anyone else - Because it  _ was different. _ It was so extraordinarily different that it felt _ silly _ to even  _ compare  _ the two emotions. 

She loved Amity - For so many reasons - Because she was kind. Because she was smart. Because she always tried to be better than she was before. Because she learned from her mistakes, because she was always there to help when Luz needed her. And at that exact moment, she was kissing the person she loved. 

And the rush, the excitement, the feeling of finally knowing what all of the complicated, contradictory, battling emotions in her heart were, being able to finally put a word to it, and finally acting on it - Her heart felt like it had been sparked with electricity, and she couldn’t be happier. 

For her part, Amity had been caught completely off guard by the sudden action - Luz’s eyes had closed the moment that their lips joined, so she didn’t know what her reaction was. For a few seconds, there wasn’t any sort of movement on Amity’s part whatsoever. 

A few seconds passed though, and eventually, her hand gently reached up, and held onto the Human’s wrist - Not to push her away, but simply to enjoy the contact. She began to return the kiss. 

And that physical response snapped Luz back into reality, and made her fully realize  _ exactly what she had just done. _

Her eyes shot open, and she pulled away from the kiss - Her face boiling red, and her heart hammering against the inside of her chest like it was trying to escape. Amity just stared back at her, her face now being one more of surprise and confusion again. 

“I - I - I - I - I’m - I’m sorry!” Luz quickly said, holding her hands up in front of her. “I - I - I just - With everything you said, and - And trying to figure out how I felt, it - It all just sort of came together at one and I - I -“ 

_ “Please never apologise for doing that, Luz.” _ Amity’s voice was quiet and soft, like she was still registering what had just happened. Her fingers touched her lips, and as soon as they did, Amity’s face exploded into a deep crimson blush. 

“I - “ Luz could have sworn that any sweat or tears or any of the other liquids that now covered her absolute mess of a face had evaporated at how hot it felt. “I - I didn’t mean for the… K - Kiss.” 

Amity’s own face seemed to go darker when the word ‘kiss’ left Luz’s lips. She blinked twice, and then asked, “Wait, then - then what did you - “

“Y - You’re… You’re supposed to ask if it’s okay before you k - kiss someone, right?” 

They both looked at one another for a moment, in near complete silence. 

Luz looked at Amity, and Amity looked at Luz. Neither of them moved so much as a centimetre. 

And then Amity burst out laughing -  _ After all of this! After everything that they had said and everything that had just happened - That was what she was freaking out about?  _

_ This was so, so, so much funnier than ‘You look very wow’ from earlier!  _

It took her a few seconds to truly appreciate the absurdity of what she had just said, but Luz started laughing as well - Her face had ached - Ached from the crying and the tears, and felt wet and dry all at once, and Amity’s infectious laughter and the absurdity of the situation made the Human just erupt into laughter along with the Witch in front of her. Her hands reached up to grab hold of Amity’s shoulders, needing them to support so she didn’t slam face first into the mud from all the laughing! 

Relief, adrenaline, excitement, fear, joy - All of those emotions mixed in with one another as the pair of them laughed and laughed. It had never felt so good to laugh like they did. But eventually, they did manage to calm down, at least enough to speak to one another. 

“I like you, Amity.” Luz finally managed to say, and saying that felt like she had just been released from prison. She said it again, just so she could feel it again. “I like you a lot.” 

“I like you too.” Amity told her, her shoulders slumped like she had just had a huge weight lifted off them. Luz already knew how she felt - Saying it was superfluous, but it felt incredibly good to be able to just say it anyway. “I… I was afraid that you did after you ran.” 

“I’m… Sorry, about that. I sort of ruined the Festivus for you, huh?” 

“Luz… You’ve done the  _ opposite _ of ruin the Festivus for me right now.” Amity laughed again. “Seriously. Don’t - Don’t worry about it. It’s okay.” 

“What…” The Human asked, a smile still on her face, and while still chucking slightly as she looked at Amity. It was hard to know if it was a chuckle at the hilarity of the situation, or one of relief and euphoria. “...What do we do now?” 

In response, Amity’s hand reached up, and placed her hand over her opposite shoulder, and on top of Luz’s hand. She smiled just as much, watching Luz’s eyes follow her hand. “..What do you want us to do?” 

“I… I don’t know. I’ve… I told you. None of this ever happened to me before. I.. I don’t know the first thing I’m doing.” 

“I… Do you want to be my girlfriend?” 

Almost like a switch had been pulled, Luz’s head snapped towards Amity.  _ She had heard that right, right?  _

“I - I don’t know what I’m doing either!” Whatever image there had been of Amity having some kind of collected or had-any-idea-what-she-was-doing attitude about this entire situation evaporated as soon as Luz’s eyes met hers again. “I - I just - That - That seems like a thing you’re supposed to ask, right? A - And I - I mean, I’d like it if we were but I don’t want to sound like I’m trying to rush you into anything, I just - “ 

“Yes.” Luz’s voice was tiny, and more like a squeak than anything else, but it was just as loud as it needed to be. 

“Y - Yes?” 

“Yes!” Luz repeated, far more certainly and confidentially. “Yes I - I would - I would love to be your girlfriend - I - If you want to be mine, I mean!” 

“O - Of course I do! I’m the one who asked you!” It was impossible to keep the massive smirks off of either of their faces. 

There weren’t words to describe how happy Luz felt in that moment. Awkwardly though, she stumbled with her words, not sure how to react to all of this. “I - I… I guess that's that then.” 

“....Is it okay if I kiss you again?” 

The suddenness of the question made Luz jump slightly. Her face reddened even more, but she nodded, awkwardly. Instead of saying that it was okay, or saying yes, or even just nodding, Luz instead opted for somehow, an even more embarrassing option. 

“Y - Yes, please.” She answered, red in the face. 

Smiling as she placed a hand on Luz’s cheek and another around her wait, Amity pulled Luz into another kiss - It was different to their first one, which had been in the heat of the moment, and spontaneous. This time both of them knew it was coming, and reacted accordingly. 

The truth was, inside her, Luz still held all those fears that had caused her to hide her feelings away. Somehow, she had a feeling that she would never be truly rid of them. That they were going to be something that she would have to learn to deal with rather than be rid of. 

But these feelings were what led to this moment. They were the reason that right now, she knew how she felt about Amity. They were the reason that this moment could exist. 

And now, she had Amity with her. She could face that. 

She could face anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaand there it is! The moment this entire fic has been building up towards! I really hope that it was worth the wait! 
> 
> Honestly is there anything more that needs to be said other than “fucking finally”?
> 
> I hope to see you next time - For the final chapter of Valeween!


	20. Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to read the authors notes at the end of this!

“... I give it a month.” 

After the number of observations that she’d made, and having watched the way the two of them acted around each other for as long as Luz had, she was beyond certain. And while it did help that she didn’t need to guess how at least one of them felt, the more that she watched, she was starting to get more and more confident that the feeling was starting to become reciprocal. 

It was in the little things — The comfort that developed, the back-and-fourths that they shared, the fact that whenever Boscha made an excuse to be around Willow, Willow never seemed to mind, but would just smile and nod, and accept it without question. The knowing glances that Willow would give whenever she looked towards Boscha, but never said a word about it. How she would offer to help her whenever she seemed to struggle with something academic, and would give Boscha the excuses she needed to be close to her. 

Luz was confident. She was _overwhelmingly confident._

“I’ll bet you _any_ amount of Snails on it.” She added on top of it, with a massive, certain grin on her face. She held up a single finger as she repeated it. “One month, tops.”

“Seriously?” With an incredulous expression on his face, Gus expressed his scepticism. It slowly turned into a smirk of his own. “I’ll take you on that bet - That’s way too soon!” 

“You think so? I mean - Just look at them!” 

Gus looked down a few rows, towards Willow and Boscha. While Willow had one of her Plant Track textbooks out that she was reading with a clear interest, Boscha was leaning slightly against the other Witch, placing her head on Willow’s shoulder so her chin was resting upon it, as though she were reading the book alongside Willow. 

Of course, Boscha had no real interest in Plant Magic - She was doing this so that she had an excuse to be close to Willow. Like Luz had noticed, it wasn’t the first time she had done this either, and over time, had been more and more blatant about it, escalating from just sitting that little bit closer to her, to the current borderline cuddling that was happening now. 

And again, Willow didn’t seem to mind, or make any effort at all to move either herself or Boscha away from this position. It even looked like she was leaning into it slightly right now, as she pointed out certain pages or diagrams to the Potions Witch quite happily. 

It was hard to argue: They even _looked_ like a couple right now. 

“You two _do realize_ \- “ The three-eyed girl suddenly peeled herself off of Willow's shoulder, and turned to give the two of them a small glare, with a raised eyebrow above her left and forehead eyes, “ - that we can hear _literally everything_ you’re saying, right?” 

In spite of the glare that she was giving them though, there was red on Boscha’s cheeks. The thinly veiled and implied threat didn’t quite have the same impact when the one making it was blushing as much as she was. 

All Luz could think was that it was _cute_ that Boscha got flustered that easily. 

“Be nice.” Willow told her, just like she always did when Boscha made flustered faux-threats, while not even taking her eyes away from the book. There was a small smirk as she spoke though, like she just knew that just saying it would get Boscha to back down. 

It did just that too - Boscha did give both Gus and Luz another look, but she then returned to the prior position she had been in, chin resting on Willow’s shoulder. A small giggle could be heard from Willow as Boscha resettled into place, and after a few seconds, a slight laugh could be heard from Boscha too. The kind of laugh that could only happen when someone could laugh at their own awkwardness. 

“... On second thoughts, I don’t think I wanna take you up on that bet.” Gus whispered to Luz. “I keep forgetting how differently Boscha acts around Willow now. It’s like Willow has her wrapped around her finger.” 

She had to cover her mouth so that Boscha didn’t hear her, but Luz couldn’t help but laugh at that. 

Over the last couple of months, it has been impossible not to notice how much closer the pair of them had ended up. Ever since Valeween, Willow had been allowing herself to become more and more comfortable with Boscha, and the two of them had incrementally gotten closer and closer to one another. And it did take a while - The memories of what had happened between the two of them for years didn’t just fade away, but after seeing all the efforts that she had made to try to fix things and become better, Willow seemed to have forgiven her for it. 

Seeing Boscha just hanging out around Willow had become more and more of a common sight, and eventually, they had established a proper rapport - A proper friendship, in which Willow had been entirely comfortable with, and even seemed to value. 

And, Luz was certain, was starting to feel it was more than that. 

It was the end of what had felt like a long day at Hexside, and the four of them were waiting within the Grudgby stadium seating area for Amity - More specifically, Luz was waiting for Amity, and Gus and Willow were there mostly just to keep her company and hang out while they waited. Boscha was also there, as an odd, almost new addition, but also sort of an orbiter of their group now. Mostly she was there on account of said friendship-slash-relationship-slash-whatever-it-was _thing_ with Willow. 

It was actually difficult to pin down what exactly Boscha’s relationship with the rest of the group was. Whatever it was, it wasn’t open hostility anymore.

With the end of the Passover Festivus, and Valeween in general, Boiling Isles society had begun to return to it’s normal routines. Hexside had reopened and classes now went ahead as usual, the stores began to charge money for their goods and services again, and the Emperor's Coven was once more a regular sight as they patrolled the streets and enforced the law. And for her part, Luz found herself thrown back into her own usual routines on the Isles again, which involved learning whatever Magic she could, searching for Glyphs, trying to pass tests at Hexside, and nearly getting eaten by monsters every other week. 

Bizarre as her life was, even by Boiling Isles standards, there was actually some comfort in falling back into that routine after everything that had happened. A feeling of structure. Certainty. 

Valeween, and the effects of the event, still hung in the air over a lot of the Isles, and Luz had a feeling that they were going to last for quite some time to come. Throughout Bonesborough, and throughout Hexside as well, there were still people who would cross the streets or hallways if they ran into a certain person, or there would be thinly-veiled civility over a bubbling monster of antagonism from those who never resolved their conflicts.

But that wasn’t to say it was all bad, either — There were some people who had always seemed to avoid or fight one another who had now become close friends, either through the Cherubim directly, or from their shared experiences fighting the Cherubim together. Some long standing rivalries between people had ended, or at least now had an underlying, genuine respect to them. 

If she had to, Luz would probably characterize her current relationship with Boscha as that now - They were friendly enough to one another, but there was still an undercurrent of a certain kind of tension between the pair of them. But at the same time, they had grown more used to one another and at least respected each other, and they would push one another when it came to their respective relationships. It was still a process between the pair of them, just like it was between Boscha and Willow. 

And that wasn’t to say anything of the people whose romantic feelings had been exposed. It wouldn’t be fair to say that every single one of those endeavours had ended well. There had been some people who had had to deal with heartbreak, and everything that that entailed. It was inevitable, and Luz honestly felt bad for the people who had had to go through that.

From what Luz could see in spite of that though, most cases had actually gone fairly well - A better positive-outcome ratio than was normal for the average Valeween, if she understood it right. Again, she could point to examples like Boscha and Willow on that front, even though they weren’t actually dating yet. 

One of the other examples, of course, would be herself and Amity. 

Speaking of whom - Amity was starting to run late. Luz checked her Scroll, to see if Amity had messaged her to say where she was, and if the Human had just missed it. 

There weren’t any notifications on her Magical device though, at least not from Amity. She closed it and shovelled it back into her pocket. Knowing Amity, she was probably just busy with her Abomination teacher, or one of the other teachers that had wanted her for ‘top-student’ things.

Of course, Luz understood, and didn’t hold it against Amity at all - She was just eager to get to work! 

“Still nothing from Amity?” Gus asked, observing all of this. 

“Nope.” 

“I’m sure she’ll be here soon.” Her friend assured her, giving her the ‘Human expert’ smile he did when he led lectures in the Human Appreciation Society. Apparently, he thought it gave him an air of credibility. His smile dropped after a few seconds though, and his expression turned into one of curiosity. “What’re you planning on doing today, anyway?” 

“Just some research at the library.” A pause. “About Earth.” 

“You’re still looking for a way to get back there?” 

“Yep.”

“Will the library even have anything about that?” 

“I dunno, but hey, gotta start somewhere. Hey, do you wanna come with us?” She suddenly asked, tilting her head slightly. “I know it’s not exactly the most interesting thing in the world to do, but we’ve all been super busy and you and I haven’t gotten to hang out much lately - It could be fun!” 

Gus’ lips curled into a smile, like he appreciated just being asked - But he shook his head. “Thanks, but, I’ve got to work on my next Human Appreciation Society presentation - It’s due in a few days! I’m gonna take H.A.S back from Mattholomule someday soon! I just need something that’ll ‘wow’ everyone!” 

He was passionate, if nothing else. Luz could almost see the fire in his eyes. With how busy everyone had been though, as the end of the Hexside school year was fast approaching and exams were following suit. That was why Willow was studying even now. And it seemed like everyone had their own projects to be concerned about on top of that — Luz’s research into finding a way back to Earth, Gus’ Human Appreciation Society plans, and Willow seemed to be figuring out whatever it was that she had going on with Boscha. It had left them all with only a certain amount of time that they could spend hanging out together. They could do study sessions together, and often did, but that wasn’t the same as just being able to hang out together. 

Once the exam season passed, that would change, and they would be able to just spend time around one another like they were when she first arrived on the Isles - But Luz wouldn’t pretend that she didn’t miss doing that right now. 

“Besides,” Gus carried on, a small, teasing smirk spreading as he spoke. “I don’t know if Amity would like it if I came along anyway.”

“What an _exciting_ date you’d be interrupting.” Luz said sarcastically as rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner. “Going through a dozen old research books and urban legends looking for any mention of a portal to Earth.” 

“That, and I dunno if I wanna be a third wheel. You know how you two get.” 

“Okay, fair enough.” At that, Luz laughed, with a hint of a blush accenting her cheeks, before an idea popped into her head. “Hey, if you want, I could give you a hand with your Human Appreciation Society thing sometime! I could teach you about… I dunno, Human music!” 

After a brief pause, Gus’ eyes seemed to shine at the suggestion, like that was what he’d been searching for. “Yes! Absolutely! That sounds perfect! I could impress everyone with your Human Rocky-Rolling music!” 

“I… Think you mean rock‘n’roll.”

“You sure? I’m pretty sure I read -” Gus stopped mid-sentence, and paused for a few seconds. His eyes focused down a few rows. One eye opened wider, while the opposite eyebrow burrowed itself. “What the - When did _that_ happen?” 

Glancing over in the direction Gus was looking, Luz saw what he was talking about; At some point while they were speaking - Luz didn’t know when, exactly - Boscha had begun to lay lengthways on one of the pews, and had her head rested on Willow’s lap, using it like a cushion. From the angle that the Human was at, she could see that all three of her eyes were closed.

Willow didn’t seem to mind at all - She was still holding her book, flipping through the pages that she needed to be studying, but other than that she had to hold the book in the air rather than have it on her lap, she didn’t seem to mind Boscha’s position at all, or even act as though she were even there. The only real indicator that she had even acknowledged it was the fact that the smile that had been on her lips was slightly bigger, and her cheeks seemed to be slightly redder than normal. 

To be blunt about it _\- It was adorable._

“ _Oh. My. God_.” Luz squealed, clasping her hands over her mouth so that Boscha nor Willow could hear her. It was so precious! 

On the other hand, Gus just seemed confused more than anything else. He had an eyebrow raised at the scene, and Seemed like he was looking for… Some sort of visual explanation. “How did that _even happen_ without either of us noticing it?”

“I have no idea but I need to get a photo of this!” Luz’s hands quickly grabbed hold of one another, and she quickly reached back into her pocket to pull out her Scroll - There was no way she was going to let this moment pass by without getting a picture of it. 

She stood up, and made her way down a few rows, until she was able to get a clear image of both Witches. A couple of taps later, the photo was taken, a small clicking noise following as she took the picture - Though where the clicking noise came from, and why Scrolls made them, Luz had never been able to figure out. 

As soon as the photo was taken, Boscha’s forehead eye opened up, and landed on Luz. Both she and Luz stared at one another for just a brief moment, waiting for the other to move first. It wasn’t so much a hostile stare as it was more a _‘Caught in the act and neither side knowing how to proceed’_ stare. 

Luz broke first. “Hey there.” She smirked, giving a slightly awkward wave.

A sigh escaped Boscha, and her cheeks went red again. “I swear to the Titan, Human, If I see that photo on Penstagram, I’m gonna feed you to a Slitherbeast.” 

“Hey, be nice.” Willow said again, looking down from her book, like this was the first time that she had even acknowledged Boscha’s presence on her lap. She gave Boscha one of those _‘Not actually mad but don’t do that’_ glares that she seemed to reserve almost exclusively _for_ Boscha.

“I _was_ being nice.” The three-eyed girl answered, opening up all of her other eyes and looking up towards her. She bared her teeth as she grinned. “If they were anyone else, I’d feed them to the Were-Sharks.” 

For a second, Willow and Boscha just looked at one another. After the second passed, and with a small sigh, Willow closed her book, held it in one hand, and then lightly tapped the other girl's forehead with it.

“No.” She said simply, just raising an eyebrow at the other girl once she could see her face again. 

Boscha just laughed - Properly describing the dynamic that the two of them had was difficult, but this sort of behaviour between the pair of them wasn’t anything new. It just seemed to be how they operated. Whatever it was, they both seemed to have fun with it, so Luz didn’t say anything. 

Once the book was out of her face, Boscha looked up at Willow with a fondness in her expression that Luz was able to easily recognise. 

She saw it in Amity all the time. 

“...What the heck did I just walk in on?” A voice behind them asked. _Amity’s voice._

Quickly, Luz turned back around, and sure enough, there was Amity. She stood there with a small, amused grin on her face, and a raised eyebrow as she observed the situation. What this situation looked like to her was anyone’s guess. 

Not that Luz thought about that for even a moment though. 

“Amity!” In the space of just a couple of seconds, Luz had run up to the other girl and pulled her into a tight hug that picked her slightly up off the ground. If she didn’t need to worry about slipping on one of the steps, she would have spun her around in the air too. 

“H - Hey, Luz.” Amity still wasn’t entirely used to this sort of a greeting, but was a lot better at handling it two months down the line - The first time that Luz greeted her like this, she’d been left a floundering wreck. Her eyes managed to dart up towards her other friends. If Luz didn’t have her arms pinned to her sides, she would have offered a wave. “Hey, you guys.”

Willow and Gus both just offered waves, neither wanting to interrupt, and still finding these interactions between Luz and Amity both amusing and adorable. For her own part, Boscha refused to move her head from Willow’s lap, so she just offered a thumbs up. 

“Sorry I’m late.” Amity said to Luz as the Human put her back down on the ground and let her go. “My Abominations Teacher wanted me to go over some stuff with them.” 

“I figured it was some ‘Top-Student’ stuff. It’s cool.” Luz smiled. “Afternoon classes go okay?” 

“They were fine.” Amity shrugged. There hadn’t been anything too eventful that had happened to her throughout the day, so there wasn’t a ton to ask about. “Busy, mostly. What about you? What’d you have?” 

“Beast Keeping and Oracle classes.” The multi-track student said. “Oracle was fine. Beast keeping was… Eventful. I think I’m afraid of heights now.” 

“... Wait, was that you I heard screaming just before the final lesson?” 

“Hey - Griffins are crazy! Viney makes it look easy!” 

A bemused sigh escaped Amity. “You’re okay, right?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine!” Luz told her with a bright grin. “I didn’t get hurt or anything! Just… Might be a while before I try and ride a Griffin again, though.” 

“That’s... Probably for the best.” Amity nodded. “In any case though, should we get going?” 

Luz nodded. “Yeah, we should. We’ve got a lot of stuff to go through, don’t we?” 

That was… Quite the understatement, to put it lightly. 

The pair of them waved and said their goodbyes to the rest of their friends, who waved and bid them their own goodbyes in return. Amity and Luz then made their way out of the Grudgby seating area, onto the open paths, and on their way towards Bonesborough. 

As they walked together, both of their hands reached for one another’s, and held on to each. Neither of them could keep the smiles off of their faces whenever they did that, and this time was no exception. 

“Willow and Boscha have certainly gotten a lot closer.” 

“Right? I was saying to Gus, I think it’s gonna be a month tops before they actually get together!” 

“That’s a bit fast, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, but you saw them! They clearly like each other! They’re practically a couple already!” 

“I suppose…” Amity then blinked, and stared down the path they were walking for a few seconds. Even after the last few months, the idea of Willow and Boscha being able to end up in a relationship was… It was difficult to conceive. Even though it was happening right in front of her, and she was, of course, happy for them. It was just difficult for her to imagine in her head. “...Do you find it weird that they managed to figure out their whole relationship… Mess, in about half the time it did for us to?”

For a second, Luz considered, and then allowed herself to smirk. “To be fair, they just, y’know, talked about it like regular people. Meanwhile, _someone_ didn’t tell me that they liked me right away.” 

In response, Amity just raised an eyebrow. “ _Someone else_ was blind in the face of the painfully obvious, and literally ran away from their own feelings.” 

Both girls looked at one another for just a second, before they both grinned and laughed. Once upon a time, these topics had been incredibly sensitive and sore for both of them, but now, looking back with the power of hindsight, it _was hard_ not to laugh at everything that had happened between them. 

“Either way,” Luz started saying, once she stopped laughing. She interlocked their fingers, and squeezed her hand. “I like our story a lot more.” 

Amity felt her cheeks redden, but she smiled all the same.

* * *

“... Huh.” 

“What?” 

“I’m… Starting to notice something of a pattern with a lot of these ‘Isles Tales’ books.” Luz said, holding up the cover of one of them so that Amity could see. “They seem to involve magical creatures getting stuck in the Human World a lot.” 

“Yes, well… A lot of the Witches during the Savage Ages thought that Earth was… Very different to how you describe it.” 

“You’re telling me.” Luz allowed herself a small laugh, scanning over the piles of books she had read. “No wonder Gus is so confused about the Human World - Humans with five arms, living teeth, gills to swim underwater - This one claims that we eat Magic. Like, literally, we just eat plates of Magic! Isn’t that insane?” 

“... To be fair, Luz,” Amity raised an eyebrow towards her Human girlfriend, and smirked, “Back when we were training for Valeween, you used a Glyph to make water, and drank it right in front of me.” 

“That’s… Different.”

“How so?” 

“... I didn’t _eat_ it. I _drank_ it.” 

Amity’s smirk just grew, and she rolled her eyes, fondly. “What a noteworthy distinction.” Luz just laughed. “Still, did you find anything in there that might be worth looking into?” 

Shutting the book and putting it on the ‘Finish Reading’ pile, Luz shook her head. “Nah, I don’t think this one was based in… Any sort of truth whatsoever. Apparently the main character just fell down a hole and ended up on Earth.” 

“I’ll take it off the list.” Amity said, twirling a finger, and using her Magic to lift up a pencil, and cross out ‘Aaron on the Human-world” from the list of possible avenues of further research. 

If they were doing it under any other set of conditions, both Luz and Amity really would have considered spending an entire day in a library like this tantamount to a date - The pair of them adored books, and within the confines of Amity’s secret room, they didn’t need to worry about anyone interrupting or distracting them, or having to deal with any awkward incidents that could crop up randomly. They could be alone, and read to their hearts contents.

Those weren’t the conditions that they were doing their reading under though. Rather than reading for the pleasure of it, they were actually compiling information on just about any book that they could find regarding the Human Realm - Be it fictional or non-fictional. With Luz’s understanding of Earth, she was able to figure out which ones were more true to reality, and ergo, which ones could be useful in helping her find a way back to Earth.

The Isles Tales books, Luz had come to decide, were the Boiling Isles equivalent of Fairy Tales, just inverted - While on Earth, fairy tales involved Magic, many Isles Tales books revolved around the loss of Magic. A lot of them were clearly high fantasy, designed to be read by kids to teach moral lessons. 

But like on Earth, there was usually at least a scrap of truth to them, even if that scrap was unique to the author and no one else. Any information whatsoever, no matter how abstract, was helpful. Anything that even _hinted_ that one of the authors might have known more about the Human World than they let on was valuable. 

It wasn’t like there was much else that they could do. If it was easy to find a portal back to the Human World, the Emperor wouldn’t have needed Eda’s portal. They were working with pretty much nothing, so they had to take whatever they could find, and shift through that information later, to figure out what was worth looking into, and what to completely discard. 

“There was something in this book.” Amity said, holding up the book she had been reading. _‘Unsolved Mysteries of the Isles’_. “Apparently, a group of people went missing for three days, came back, and talked about going somewhere where the trees were green.” 

“It sounds like Earth.” 

Amity nodded. “I thought so as well. It could be nothing but, I’ll make a note of it.” She scribbled a few things on the list that they had between them, and then put the book into the ‘Read’ pile. She picked up another book from the ‘To read’ pile, and then leaned back into the bean-bag chair that the pair of them were sharing. 

Leaning back in, the chair shifted slightly under her weight, and she ended up leaning against Luz’s shoulder. For just a moment, neither of them moved. Luz finally smiled, and leaned back against Amity, resting her head just on top of hers. Though she blushed, Amity felt herself relax and leaned into it more, enjoying the feeling of comfort doing so gave her. 

Aside from their investigations, the last two months had been the pair of them getting more and more comfortable and used to the fact that they were actually together now. Going on dates together, being able to hold hands or hug or kiss or anything else. Even just able to spend time with one another not as friends, but as girlfriends - 

_There had been an adjustment period_. That couldn’t be denied - Neither of them had any actual experience with dating another person whatsoever. Neither of them were totally sure how to act… To be perfectly blunt, neither of them had even the remotest clue what they were doing. 

And they had had a few awkward moments - At one point, Luz had attempted to ask Amity on a date with a bouquet of flowers that, culturally on the Isles, were supposed to convey animosity, although Luz had no idea that that was the case. Of course, Amity understood that Luz couldn’t have known that, and they laughed about it later, but the resulting situation had been… Confusing and awkward were probably the most polite ways of putting it. 

Incidents like that aside though, for Amity, it was euphoric. Finally, she had been able to address and deal with the feelings that had been tearing her apart inside for months, and knowing that Luz liked her back, and that they got to spend time together like this… Euphoric was really the only word for it. 

For Luz, it had been… Difficult, sometimes. She had spent so much of her life getting used to hiding her feelings from herself, keeping them in that box in her heart, that it had become practically second nature. She had blocked out all the signs that Amity could have liked her for so long, that sometimes it felt like it was impossible to accept that Amity could like her. 

But she was happy - The impenetrable mess of contradictory feelings and anxieties and fears were addressed, and she finally knew the cause. And she wasn’t alone with them - She had Amity with her. 

Amity had helped her through the episodes of doubt and uncertainty, and was there when she needed help in whatever area it was in, be it her anxiety regarding their relationship, Hexside, or their research. 

Maybe that was one of the things that really helped Luz ground herself. That Amity was there when she needed her. That she would be there to help her through whatever rough patch she found herself in. That in spite of all the anxieties and fears that Amity had had about Luz leaving the Isles and going back to Earth, she would still spend her afternoons helping the Human to do just that. Maybe that was something that only made sense to Luz. 

But it helped. Made her know that she had a girlfriend that she could rely on. 

They were both complete messes at the end of the day - But they did everything they could to help each other out. And when everything was said and done, that was all they could do. 

And that was all that they needed. 

Luz let herself lean more against Amity, settling her head atop the Witches. Amity made her happy - It was actually insane just how happy being around Amity made her. Just being around her made everything better. And she liked being this close to her. 

Although right now, it tickled, on account of the longer, not-tied-up, messy hair that her head was now leaning against. 

“Your hair’s getting pretty long.” Luz said, absently. 

“Yeah, I’ve not had it cut for a while.” Amity acknowledged. “It takes a while to get it dyed, so I let it grow out a bit before getting it done.” 

“...Ah...” 

Even before Valeween, Luz had learned a lot about Amity’s parents, and the way that they treated her. The standards that they expected her to hold up to, the systems she was expected to adhere to — Even what they honestly saw her as. As some sort of extension of their own family’s legacy, or reputation or... Or whatever the hell it was supposed to be that they cared about. 

One of the ones that Luz remembered a lot was that her parents made her dye her hair so she matched the twins - Because she saw Amity being born with the wrong hair colour as some kind of mistake. Like it was her fault. And to say that that logic _infuriated_ Luz would be an understatement. 

It had been the day before Valeween that Amity had shared that particular bit of information with Luz, and the memories of that day just came running back into Luz’s mind - Just a few moments prior, she had told Amity that the colour suited her. That it looked very ‘Amity’. She hadn’t thought about it since then, but now, it bugged her that she had said that. 

Amity was Amity - And Luz didn’t want her to feel that it wouldn’t be okay for her to stop dyeing it on her account. It wouldn’t change anything. And maybe that was a silly worry to have, and didn’t make sense to anyone else, but it made sense to Luz. 

“... Hey, Amity?” 

“Yeah?” 

“You, er… You remember the day we talked before Valeween?” 

“... Which part?” Amity asked, blinking. “We kind of talked about a lot then.” 

A small laugh escaped Luz - That was putting it about as mildly as possible. “I er… I meant about your hair.” 

“What about it?” 

“I… Kind of said that I thought green hair suited you. You remember?” 

“Mm-hmm?” 

“I um… I know your mom makes you dye it, but, I just… You know that I don’t mind what colour your hair is, right?” 

Shifting slightly, Amity looked up at Luz as best she could, given their positions. “Huh?” 

“I - I just - I dunno if it’s dumb or anything, but - I just wanted to say that you don’t need to like… I don’t know, if you wanted to get rid of it, maybe we could get Gus or the twins to cast an Illusion spell so your parents wouldn’t know or something, I don’t know. I just, I don’t want you thinking that just ‘cause I like it you should keep it or… Something.” Luz’s ramblings came to a railed off end, and she suddenly found herself feeling awkward for having said it. 

Still, it felt important that Amity knew that. 

Amity pulled herself away from Luz, but she kept their hands tightly held together. For a moment, Luz thought that she might have said something to upset her, but Amity just smiled at her. 

“... Thanks, Luz. Really. I appreciate that… But I like having it green.” 

Luz blinked. “You - You do?” 

“Yep - I think you were right. It suits me.” With her free hand, she ran a could of fingers through some green strands, pulling at them so they just came within her sight. She smiled at it. “I’m used to it too. It’s… Honestly kind of hard to picture myself without it at this point. It’s more...” 

The smile faded, and she turned, to look over the edge of the flying boat. She was quiet for a few seconds. 

“... It’s being _forced_ to dye it that bothers me. I don’t get a choice in it.”

That… Made sense, Luz thought to herself. She didn’t mind doing a lot of things - But when she was forced to do those things, suddenly, doing them felt… Wrong, almost? The issue wasn’t so much that she was doing them, but that she was being forced to do them against her will. If she could choose to do those things, then she would, but not having a choice almost made her resistant to doing them. 

Maybe that was weird, but it made sense to her, and it seemed to be what Amity felt too. 

So for Amity, it wasn’t so much the fact that she didn’t like having it dyed - It was that she didn’t have a choice in it. 

“And even if it was something I hated doing, it’s… Not worth the fight it would cause right now.” Amity said, sighing, and leaning back in her seat. Another sigh escaped her. “You know what my parents are like.” 

Again, that made sense, and Luz was very aware. She just nodded. 

“...My parents ruined a lot of stuff for me back when I was a kid.” Amity lamented. Her hand squeezed Luz’s. “They ruined my friendship with Willow… They ruined any chance I thought I had at impressing them. They ruined… They ruined a lot of stuff.” 

Finally, she returned her eyes to Luz’s. 

“I’m not letting them ruin anything else for me.” 

Her double meaning was clear. And to it, Luz just smiled, and allowed herself to lean into Amity again.

* * *

As the hours passed, they went through more and more books, making notes of whichever ones that they found that had an avenue of something that seemed promising in some way. Whenever they ran out of books to read, they would pick up all of the books they had read, and return to the library proper, re-shelf them, and gather as many other books as they were capable of carrying, and bringing them back to Amity’s secret room, and begin the whole process again. 

They ended up going through all manner of various different texts - From Isles Tales, to more scientific theories regarding using Magic to travel to different Realms. From research papers on the Cherubim’s home Realm and how to possibly contact it, to old archaeological documents regarding the Savage Age temples, like the Ved’ma Temple that Luz had visited months ago. Some of those talked about other markings that to Luz, looked like Glyphs, but when she tried to draw them and activate them, nothing happened. 

Maybe they were drawn inaccurately so that whenever people visited the temples, they didn’t accidentally activate and cause damage? That was pretty much the only explanation Luz could think of - Assuming that they were supposed to be Glyphs, of course. 

Maybe it would be worth visiting those temples more in the future. 

Neither of them kept any particular track of time - They were too invested in their reading and research, and enjoying just being within one another’s company. It was one of those things that Luz had noticed over the course of their relationship. Even the most mundane things, like being in a study-intensive Magical history class, felt more fun, and easier to do, when Amity was there with her. Just being near her made the Human happier than she was able to fully express. 

It still baffled Luz to an extent that Amity was her girlfriend now, as if eventually, she would wake up, and figure out that her mind was playing the single longest elaborate and cruel joke that the Human mind was capable of playing on itself. 

But Amity’s warmth, the way that she made Luz feel, and the way that she reacted when she saw Luz every day now - All of that was real. 

This was real. It felt like looking in a mirror, and realising how _weird_ it was to be looking at oneself, if that made… Any sort of sense. It was something that was true, that was real, but something that Luz wasn’t sure that she’d ever be able to get used to. 

And a part of her didn’t want to, either. She liked this feeling. She didn’t want to get used to it. She wanted it to remain special, to keep making her feel this way, both giddy and relaxed at the same time, enamoured by how soft and warm Amity was, and wanting to be around her as much as physically possible. 

She thought about this as she leaned against her girlfriend’s shoulder again, taking just a brief break from her reading. She closed her eyes for a moment, just looking to rest them before getting back into the grindstone. 

“Hey.” Amity’s voice was gentle and soft too. “Are you getting tired?” 

“Nope.” Luz lied, snuggling into the crook between Amity’s shoulder and neck more. “Just wanna…” She tried, and failed, to stifle a yawn. Probably one of the biggest yawns she’d ever felt herself do in her entire life, as if her own body were determined to prove her a liar. “... Rest my eyes for like, five minutes.” 

There was a slight shiver, and Luz could swear that she could hear the smile on Amity’s face as opposed to actually seeing it. Amity’s arm wrapped around Luz’s shoulder, and held her. “We have been at it for a long time now. We can call it a night if you - “ 

Suddenly, a bell-like ringing sound jolted Luz both awake and upright. It was her Scroll going off, indicating that she was receiving a call from someone. 

Because she’d just been jolted awake, Luz’s brain hadn’t caught up by the time the Human had all but thrown her Scroll out of her pocket and into the air, before trying to grab it again. After a few seconds of fumbling around with her Scroll in a panic-fuelled attempt to just stop the noise, Luz managed to firmly grab hold of the device, and see who exactly was calling her - It was Eda. She answered it. 

The first person she saw was _King_.

 _“Luz! There you are! You alright?!”_ King sounded… Panicked. 

“King? What the - Y - Yeah, I’m fine.” Luz blinked, still fully waking up from the half-asleep state she had just woken from. “Sorry, I’ve been - “ 

_“You’re safe, right? It looks pretty bad out there!”_ As he spoke, his image on the Scroll looked to be glancing out a window, like he almost expected to see Luz rushing towards the house for safety from… Something. 

“... Wait, what? What’s happening?” 

For a second, King didn’t move or say anything. A deep, long sigh followed. “I told you that they’d be fine.” And the image on Luz’s screen became a blur. Eventually, it refocused, and now, Eda was the one on screen. _“Hey Kid. I’m gonna guess that you’re inside then, if you haven’t noticed.”_

“Y - Yeah? Me and Amity are in the library.” As the Human said this, Amity leaned into view of the Scroll, so that Eda would be able to see her, and give her a slight wave. Luz carried on though, “Eda, what’s happening? You sounded really worried just now!” 

_“It’s just more Boiling Rain, kid.”_ Eda explained. As she said so, she pointed her Scroll outside, so that the two of them could see - Just like Eda had told them, Boiling Rain was falling from the skies, and scalding anything that was unfortunate enough to have gotten caught out in it. _“King was just worried that you’d gotten caught out in it.”_

 _“The King of Demons worries for no one!”_ King yelled off-screen, in the voice he put on when he was obviously worried about someone. 

“More Boiling Rain?” Amity blinked. “It’s Weisshiem, -” The Isles term for ‘winter’, Luz had learned. “- I would have expected snow before more Boiling Rain.” 

“Must have gotten warm outside since we’ve been in here or something.” Luz suggested, before addressing her mentor again. “We’re totally fine. We haven’t been outside since school let out.” 

An eyebrow raised on Eda’s face, before she shrugged her shoulders, and took a sip out of a coffee mug that had been filled before the call. _“Well, a library isn’t exactly my idea of a date, but you two do you.”_

Luz scoffed. “Eda, you and Yeven barely even _go on dates anymore_ \- You just cuddle on the couch.” 

_“Yeah, and the one time I try to plan a nice evening out for us, this happens, so, y’know, maybe the Titan is trying to say something.”_ A smirk filled Eda’s lips, before she became more serious again. _“Library’s closed at this time though, and the Weather Oracles are saying this won’t blow over until tomorrow. You two sure you’re gonna be alright in there until this blows over?”_

Briefly, Luz and Amity glanced at one another - The Library should be closed? Just how long had they _been here?_

Before Luz could say or ask any further questions though, Amity spoke up. “I’ve… Spent some nights here on my own before.” Admitting that did make her blush slightly. “It’ll be okay. There’re some snack machines in case we get hungry.” It wasn’t like they had much of a choice, anyway.

 _“... I’m just not gonna ask how and why you’ve slept in a library before, Blight.”_ Eda shook her head, either in disbelief or amusement, - It was hard to tell - before she just smiled. _“Alright, just as long as the two of you are safe. Don’t do anything that I wouldn’t do and I’ll see you when the rain stops!”_

“Okay, Eda. See you!” Luz smiled. 

With that, the call ended, and Luz allowed the Scroll to fall onto her lap. For a couple of seconds, neither Luz nor Amity said anything. A number of questions did fill the Human’s head though. 

“... Have you actually _slept_ here before?” 

“It - Sometimes I get invested in whatever I’m reading!” Amity defended, feeling her cheeks go red - Luz wouldn’t tease her for reading as much as she did, but it was still embarrassing to have to admit to being so enraptured in it that she got locked in the building and had to sleep there. “And - And the librarians don’t… _Exactly_ know about this place, so no one comes to tell me when it’s closing time!” 

“...That was gonna be my second question, actually.” A number of other questions Luz had had suddenly found themselves answered too. For just a moment, Luz mulled over Eda’s final words. “Don’t do anything Eda wouldn’t do… That… Doesn’t leave me with a lot of things that I _shouldn’t_ do, to be honest...” 

“I should probably call Beckham.” Amity said suddenly, pulling out her Scroll. “He can let my parents know it’s not my fault I’ve not gotten home yet… And let the twins know I’m alright.” 

“Oh, right. Good idea.” Luz nodded. A small yawn escaped her as the adrenaline and surprise from Eda’s call wore off. 

Quickly, Amity typed in a few numbers, and waited. She didn’t need to wait longer than five seconds for an answer though. Almost immediately, the other side picked up. 

_“Ms. Blight, there you are, thank goodness.”_ Beckham’s voice came through, his polite manner of speaking only compromised by the fact that there was a clear tinge of relief in it. _“I was beginning to worry that you had been caught in the rain.”_

Amity scratched the side of her head, awkwardly. “Sorry, Beckham. Me and Luz had been in the library all day -“ 

“Hey, Mr. Beckham.” Luz’s head suddenly rested itself on Amity’s shoulder, so that Beckham could see her face. She offered him a small, tired smile, and tried very, very hard not to let her eyes close. 

Polite as ever, Beckham gave her a small nod of his head. _“Ms. Noceda, a pleasure as always.”_ He lifted his head, and smiled at the Human girl that he had come to know, before he turned his attention back to Amity. _“I trust that you are both safe, Ms. Blight?”_

“We’re okay… Though we are locked in here until tomorrow.” 

_“Given the current weather, perhaps that is for the best.”_ Beckham said, assuredly. _“I shall inform your parents and siblings of this, if it pleases you.”_ There was a beat, before his eyes glanced towards Luz again, before back to Amity. _“I shall tell them only that which is necessary, should you prefer that.”_

A small breath that Amity hadn’t realized that she’d been holding escaped her. She knew Beckham, and knew that she didn’t need to worry about him revealing her and Luz’s relationship to her parents, but it still always gave her a douse of anxiety to just have to trust people not to reveal anything to them. A tired, relieved smile reached her lips. “Thank you, Beckham.” 

_“Not at all, Ms. Blight.”_ Beckham shook his head, allowing himself to smile back at her. _“I am pleased to have been of - “_

 _“Beckham! Is that Mittens?”_ From somewhere off the screen, Edric’s voice suddenly cut into the conversation. 

Beckham turned in the direction of the voice, and addressed the older Blight sibling. _“Er, why yes, Master Edric, it is - “_

 _“Is Luz with her?”_ This time, Emira’s voice. 

_“Er, yes - “_

_“Mittens and Kittens!”_ Edric’s voice again. Amity could already feel the teasing tone in his voice. _“Let us talk to them - “_

“Absolutely not.” Amity said with a sigh, ending the call and closing the Scroll. “I am…” 

A loud, long yawn escaped Amity almost as soon as she put her Scroll down. After having spent all day reading, hyper focused, and making notes of their research down, she had worn herself out. Her eyes shut, and stung slightly, and opening them up again felt like a challenge. 

“... Way too tired to deal with those two right now.” She finished her sentence. She didn’t bother to reopen her eyes. 

“... I still have no idea why the twins call us ‘Mittens and Kittens’.” Luz muttered sleepily. 

“They call me Mittens, and you have a hoodie with cat ears on. So you’re Kittens.”

“Oh.” A small laugh escaped Luz. For some reason she felt that she _did_ remember figuring that out on her own, but was just too tired to remember. “We have been at it a while.” A pause. “Apparently a lot longer than we thought, huh.” 

“What time even is it?” Amity asked aloud, forcing her eyes open, and flipping her Scroll open again to check the time. The answer was _late._ “...Oh, wow.” 

“It… Does _not_ feel like we’ve been here for seven hours.” Luz commented. 

“No it… Really doesn’t.” Amity agreed, though as soon as she finished talking, another yawn escaped her. 

“... D’you wanna call it a night?” Luz asked, echoing Amity’s previous sentiment, before her Scroll had run. “You seem like you’re about to fall asleep while standing up…” Suddenly, Luz found herself yawning as well. “...And I might as well, to be honest.”

Amity nodded. “I’ve um… I’ve got a blanket underneath the other bean-bag chair if you want to get that.” 

“... How… Often did you get locked in here?” Luz’s eyebrow raised again, finding herself becoming slightly concerned at how many nights Amity had spent here, working herself to the bone. 

Glancing away slightly, and blushing once again, evidently somewhat embarrassed. “... Enough that I started keeping a blanket in here. And the bean-bag chairs. I use them as mattresses.”

“... I thought that they were here just ‘cause they’re comfy.” 

“It’s... Both.” 

“Seriously, one day, you’re gonna have to explain to me how you even built this place.”

Finally separating from one another and getting up off the bean-bag that both had been sitting on, Luz walked over to the other bean-bag chair on the other side of the room, and lifted it up to find that, just as Amity had said, there was a blanket underneath. A purple, and fairly thick one. 

But just the one. 

Behind her, Amity had been clearing up the books and their research notes, utilising her Magic with the flick of her wrist. Another yawn escaped her as she did so. She had been working so much that she hadn’t realised how tired she was - Because she knew how important getting back to Earth was to Luz. Now that she had stopped reading and making notes and so on, a wave of exhaustion just hit her like a ton of bricks. 

It meant a lot to Luz — It really did. With how afraid that Amity had been of her leaving just a couple of months ago, and how that fear had metastasized into everything that happened around Valeween, the fact that she was working so, so hard to help her find a way back to the Human Realm...

Really, there wasn’t anything else that she could say about it. Luz appreciated it to the ends of the world and back. 

“Amity?” 

“Yes -“ 

Amity hadn’t even been able to get a word out before she found herself wrapped up in both Luz’s arms, and the aforementioned blanket - Luz had held the blanket up behind her and held it, and then hugged the other girl, so that they were both enveloped within. It all happened so fast that Amity barely had a second to register what was happening. 

_Until she realised that she was falling down._

In that moment, weight and momentum worked against them, and the pair of them lost balance and fell down - Collapsing right onto the bean-bag chair, just as Luz had planned.

Both of them sunk into the bean-bag, and had to scramble to not be face-down. When they managed to look up, they were looking right at one another, their faces only a few inches apart. 

“Hey.” Luz grinned.

Finally, Amity’s face caught up, and erupted into a bright red blush. “L - Luz, what are you - “ 

“There was only one blanket.” The Human said, matter-of-factly. “And this bean-bag is the comfiest thing in the entire library.” 

“Wh - When I said to get the blanket, I - I didn’t - I wasn’t implying that we sh - share it!” 

Luz raised an eyebrow. “Wait, what were you planning?” 

“I - I was just going to… Sleep on the other bean-bag while you took this one and the blanket.” 

“Well, this way you get snuggles!” Luz beamed for a few seconds, before her face fell. “... Wait, I’m not like, making you uncomfortable am I? I just - I thought this might be nice. You’ve been helping me out a ton and I just thought - “ 

“I - It is nice.” Amity stammered, but she wasn’t able to stop smiling. Even two months into their relationship, Luz had the ability to leave her completely flustered and floundering like she did when her crush first manifested. 

The smile returned to Luz’s face, after a quick sigh of relief. “Oh, good."

“... You’re lucky you’re cute though. Otherwise I’d be annoyed that you practically tackled me.” 

“No tackling Amity in the future, got it!” 

“I feel like that should go without saying.” 

“It was fun though.” 

Tired as they were, the pair of them still managed to laugh gently at the sudden situation that they had ended up in here - They’d been so invested in researching even a hint of a portal to the Human world that they ended up being locked in a library, and now were wrapped up in a blanket after being tackled onto a bean-bag.

Sometimes Amity wondered if any other couple on the entire Isles got into situations like this, or if this was just a very specific ‘Luz’ effect.

“... Hey, Amity?” Luz suddenly asked. Her laughter had stopped, and voice was a lot more sullen all of a sudden. A lot quieter. 

“Luz? What’s wrong?” 

“... Do you think that we’ll be able to find a way to get me back to Earth?” 

The atmosphere of the room suddenly shifted. For a few seconds, Amity couldn’t do anything but just blink. That… That had come out of absolutely nowhere. It took her a while to even think of anything to say.

“... Don’t you?” 

Luz’s answer was… Trepidatious. “No, I… I don’t know.” Her head shifted slightly, so that a portion of her face was covered by the bean-bag. “I mean...If there was another way and it was obvious enough that we could find it, don’t you think that the Emperor would have used it by now? Otherwise he wouldn’t have needed to steal Eda’s portal, right?” 

That… Made sense. 

“And the Emperor has like… Everything available to find a portal, right? The Emperor’s Coven is the best of everyone on the Isles, so he’d have the smartest people there too. And if they couldn’t find any other way other than Eda’s portal…” 

She trailed off, but the meaning was clear. 

If even the Emperor couldn’t find a way to the Human world without Eda’s portal, even with all the resources that he had to hand - Then what were they going to be able to do? What chance did they have? 

“... I don’t think it will be easy.” Amity admitted. “It’s… It’s something that’s been looked into a lot by a lot of famous Witches that never figured it out. I’m… Kind of surprised that Eda even managed to get hold of a portal of her own in the first place.”

“I don’t even think she remembers.” Luz sighed. “She told me she just came across it and that was that.” 

“... It… It’ll be difficult.” Amity repeated. To be honest, it made her feel bad to be this blunt, but she didn’t want to lie to Luz either. She wanted to give her a sense of hope, that things would be okay… But she couldn’t promise that. She didn’t want to give her false hope. She wanted to be honest. “... I don’t think that we’re… Going to find it any time soon.” 

“I… I know.” Luz nodded. That seemed to be something that she had already accepted. “I’m sorry, just… All this research had me thinking of Earth a lot and…” For a moment, Luz trailed off. 

Amity reached across, and gently placed a hand over the Human’s cheek. Her own hand reached up to hold onto that hand, and lean into it. It seemed to comfort her, and coax her into carrying on.

“... I keep thinking about everything that I’ve missed back on Earth. I missed Halloween. I missed my Mami’s birthday. I missed New Year’s. I missed… I missed a lot of stuff... I just want her to know I’m okay, Amity.” 

“We’ll keep looking.” Amity repeated. ”I said it’d be difficult. But we’re not gonna give up, you know that, right?” 

“I… Yeah, I know.” 

“We’re gonna find a way. We’re gonna find something, we’re gonna open up a portal, and we’re gonna get you back home.” 

“... Nope.” Luz shook her head suddenly. The faintest of smiles now reappear ring on her lips. “Wrong.” 

A small laugh managed to escape Amity. “Right, sorry, I misspoke.”

She hadn’t misspoke at all - She just loved it when Luz corrected her on this. 

“We’re going to find something, we’re going to open up a portal, we’re going to let your mom know you’re alright - And _then_ we’re gonna bring you back here - Back home.” 

To that, Luz nodded, and just snuggled up closer to Amity. Though she froze for a moment, Amity held Luz too - Luz tried to hold Amity as well, leading to an awkward, but not uncomfortable, messed up tangle of limbs as they both tried to hold the other, and be the person that was being held. They fell asleep like that, a feeling of lightness that on it’s own convinced the two of them that everything would work out, somehow. 

Valeween was an event that people who experienced them would remember for the rest of their lives. On Earth, sometimes a person would forget about a particularly uneventful birthday, or holiday, but no one ever forgot a Valeween. The unique threats posed called for unique solutions - It called for communities to unite with one another in spite of their personal differences to fight off a common threat. 

Even then, there was no guarantee of not being affected by Cherubim. No sure-fire way to hold back the tide. And all people could do was the best that they could do to protect one another. 

Some good could come of it though. Strangers could become comrades. Rivalries could form a basis of respect. And those who held deep feelings for another could find that they weren’t alone with them. 

And that could lead to a great many issues being addressed within each party. 

Luz remembered, back when all this started, Willow said that she couldn’t find it in her heart to truly hate the Cherubim. That she couldn’t truly hate Valeween. That she felt that the honesty that came from it was better than a world where people hid things from one another. 

Somehow, while asleep with a smile on her face, and with Amity holding her, and her holding Amity - Luz was beginning to feel that way too. 

**‘When the Cherubim arrive, there is no guarantee that everything will work out the way that you desire. Things can go wrong, and it can end in not only emotional pain and occidental unrest, but in the harm and even death of others, such is the nature of the Cherubim’s impact. To avoid all of this, even in the years between their invasions, all one can do is work alongside one's community, to build those bonds, to work alongside them and others, to truly care for them in spite of yourself. The Cherubim seek those who cannot do these things, or face the ramifications of those feelings.**

**Do not give them that which they seek.” - Valeween for Witchlings, Page 103, Closing Statements.**

* * *

**Aaaaaaaaand there, we, go everyone - Valeween has concluded! It’s been a long… Long time coming, but we’re finally here!**

**This story really bloody evolved from what it originally started off as, lasted a hell of a lot longer than I expected it to (It was originally supposed to be seven chapters, and finished by at the latest, the end of November, shows how much good I am at planning stuff huh), and ended up being a fairly popular fic within the Owl House fandom. This fic really turned into something special in my mind, and I think it’s one of the best things I’ve written so far.**

**A lot of things went into this fic, from the exploration of Boiling Isles cultures, to Anarchist philosophy and communalism, to trying to capture the sheer horror Valeween causes people, and the angst that comes from the situations caused by the event, and relationships between people - I know Boschlow in particular was a sore subject for a lot of people and while I enjoy it, I wanted to address those concerns fairly and portray the ship as I think it needs to be portrayed and in a way that's respectful to people.**

**Also Luz - Luz was a very interesting character in this fic. The amount of crap it’s implied she’s been subjected to, I think is inevitably going to manifest itself in incredibly damaging ways to the poor kid. I wanted to portray that fairly as well. There was a lot of thought that went into her and Amity, and how these two angsty kids would work in this situation. There was a lot of thought that went into everyone, honestly, and I’m so glad that it turned out this way. They needed a happy ending after all the shit I’ve put them through.**

**I wanna say thanks to everyone who’s stuck with this fic for as long as they have - It’s been an absolute blast seeing people trying to theorycraft what would happen in subsequent chapters. It made working on this a lot more fun because that way, I got to mess with you all more - Thanks for sticking around, it’s been a ton of fun!**

**SO - What’s next? Glad you asked! Earlier today, you’ll have seen that I’ve started a brand new project with a friend, the amazing JuliaCorvia, called[Guitar Strings and Flower Petals](https://archiveofourown.org/works/29686764/chapters/72998478) \- A SkaraXWillow fic! I would love it if you’d be willing to check it out, because Julia and I have a metric ton of ideas for this one, and below, there is going to be previous work, links to other projects I’ve been doing, and the likes! It would mean the world if you could comment, Kudos, favourite or whatever it is you do on the platform you’re reading this on - I’d love to hear your thoughts, favourite moments, chapters, what you think could have been done better, etc etc - And below, you’ll find a list of my other works, both on and off platform!**

**Thank you all so much for reading Valeween - and I hope I’ll see you around!**

**Fics**

**[It Must Be (A) Love (Potion)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26512093) \- A short story based around Luz’s insecurity and uncertainty and belief that no one can be in love with her - Which is challenged when Amity finds the courage to confess**

**[Beautiful Cruelty](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26109724) \- A short (hopefully soon to return) story regarding Amity’s feelings towards Luz, and cruel it feels that Luz is painfully unaware of them.**

**[Project Unravelled](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28969497/chapters/71090442) \- A large collaboration Steampunk AU, working with a number of larger creators in the Good Witch Society**

**Videos**

**[Rejecting Social Norms, Rejecting Authority, and Intersectionality](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3m_LAEdZTcM) \- A video in which I look at the various political themes within Owl House**

**[Are The Boiling Isles FASCIST?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoRbz3gnAUc) \- A video in which I explore various aspects of the boiling Isles, and how they relate to fascist tendencies both historically and currently**

**[Eda Clawthorne Is An Anarchist](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCR1Lr2W2WE) \- A video in which I put forward the idea that Eda embodies the tenets of Anarchist philosophy**

**[Main Twitter](https://twitter.com/QuirkQuartz) | Fandom Twitter | **

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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